Scrumptious Street

Cranberry-Tangerine Sauce

I love real cranberries during the holidays but can't stand the canned stuff. My Mom makes a terrific homemade cranberry relish similar to this one that I love having whenever we visit them for the holidays.  But, I started doing my own thing on a quest for my ultimate cranberry sauce a while ago and have perfected my recipe in recent years.  This is much thicker than many sauces, but not like the canned "jellies" you see everywhere. Here is my "Cranberry-Tangerine Sauce", a perfect accompaniment to turkeys, stuffings and potatoes.

The sauce is both sweet and slightly tart, a little tangy and a little warm and spiced like a good spiced red wine.  It's full of flavor and depth and the consistency when fully set is like a loose jam.  Here in my photo it still hadn't set so it's a bit smoother and runnier in the picture.  This compote gets so much better as it sits in the fridge so make it the day before you want to eat it or first thing in the morning, the day of your meal!  Once refrigerated a while the tastes intensify and the texture becomes spreadable, perfect for slathering on poultry.

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone celebrating!

Ingredients
Serves 8-10

1 bag fresh cranberries
1 c. sugar
1 c. water
1/2 c. fresh tangerine juice, squeezed
1/2 stick whole cinnamon
1 whole star anise
zest from 1 tangerine (about 2 tsp.)
pinch of ground nutmeg
pinch of ground allspice

Method:
1. In a medium saucepan combine the cranberries, sugar, water, tangerine juice, cinnamon stick, and star anise.  Turn heat to medium and bring to a gentle boil.
2. Once the sauce is starting to boil and becoming thicker, about 4-5 minutes, you will hear the cranberries skins begin to pop.  At this point add the zest, the nutmeg and allspice and stir with a wooden spoon.
3. Let the sauce gently boil until the cranberries begin to break apart and the sauce becomes thick, like a runny jam, about 2-3 minutes more. Stir frequently but not continuously.  Break apart some of the cranberries with a wooden spoon.
 
4. Remove the sauce from the heat and pour into a heat and refrigerator-proof bowl.  Let the sauce cool until it stops steaming.  Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate until 20 minutes before serving.  Remove and let come to room temperature, serving in a bowl on the side.  Use as garnish, spread or any way you like it.  Enjoy!

Fig and Italian Sausage "Dressing" (not stuffing)

I admit it, this is a repeat from last year's star of Thanksgiving.  However, I've had so many requests for great Thanksgiving dishes, that I thought this is worth republishing. This is a fantastic recipe and result, the best side dish on your holiday table!

What's the difference between "dressing" and "stuffing"? Whether it's cooked inside the bird or outside.  This is dressing, since it's cooked outside the bird and actually great if you're not cooking whole poultry at all!  My "Fig and Italian Sausage Dressing" is a winner, hopefully you can try it either this week or in many of your holiday meals.

Here's the recipe, Happy Thanksgiving!

Ingredients
Serves 4

1 round of rosemary-olive oil Italian bread (wow, I found a recipe, next time I'll make the bread too)
2 T. extra virgin olive oil
6 leaves fresh sage, 4 minced and 2 whole
1/2 yellow onion, diced
12-18 dried mission figs, stemmed and quartered
1/2 lb. sweet Italian sausage, removed from casings or ground
3 c. low-sodium chicken stock (or homemade turkey or chicken stock)
1/2 tsp. fennel seed, crushed
Kosher salt
freshly ground black pepper

Method:
1. Slice the crusts off the bread if desired and dice into cubes.  Leave out for a few hours in advance to dry out slightly.  Preheat oven to 325˚F.  Spread the bread cubes in a single layer on a baking sheet and toast for 20 minutes, stirring once.  Remove from oven when toasted and let cool.  Increase the oven temperature to 350˚F.

2. Heat the olive oil over medium-high in a medium skillet.  Add the onion and 2 whole sage leaves and sauté until the onions are translucent, about 4-6 minutes.  Add the figs and toss until coated.  Remove from heat, take out the whole sage leaves and set the onions and figs aside.

3. Add the stock to a saucepan and gently bring it up to simmer.

4. Add the sausage to the skillet and sauté, making sure to break sausage into fine chunks and cook until brown on the outside and very little pink inside.  It should be browned as you would ground beef but slightly longer. Remove from heat when cooked through.  Drain any excess fat from the sausage.

5.  Place the bread in a very large bowl.  Add the fennel seed, the minced sage, onions and figs and the sausage.  Mix gently with a spoon.  Slowly add the stock, adding one cup at a time until the bread is completely moist but not soggy.  Depending on your bread, you may need slightly more or less than 3 cups.  Make sure all sides of the bread look coated, but not too wet.  Taste and adjust seasonings with a little kosher salt and ground black pepper.

6.  Spread the dressing into a heavy, dark baking dish and cover with aluminum foil.  Bake for 35 minutes covered.  Remove the foil and bake 10 minutes more, until crispy on the top and edges.  Serve immediately!

Roasted Golden Beets, Cippolini and Fresh Figs

One of my favorite and highly anticipated Autumn ingredients is fresh figs. Sweet, juicy, full of flavor and wonderful texture, they are a terrific addition to many dishes. Here in California, where many figs are raised, they have been the little gems of the Farmer's Markets.  Whether it's this vegetable side dish or my favorite holiday dressing, I love cooking with them. Recently I found some that were so purple and plump that they cried out for me to create a new dish. Here is my "Roasted Golden Beets, Cippolini and Figs".

I love roasting beets too, but this dish turned out very special because even though all of the major ingredients are vegetables, all three sweeten beautifully as they roast. The sugars develop so that your final result is satisfying and scrumptious, and works as a great side dish to pork or red meat. It's really a simple recipe but each ingredient is there to complement the others, so that a bite gives you a little of everything. You could also substitute the beets for any number of fantastic dark-fleshed winter squash or edible pumpkins. Let your imagination run! Typically when I prepare beets, I roast them first with skin on to develop maximum flavor and retain as much moisture as possible. In this case, however, I wanted all of the flavors to blend while roasting. So, I peeled the beets before roasting. Little differences in technique like this really determine how much your flavors work together or maintain their individual tastes.

Here's my simple and fast recipe.
Ingredients Serves 4 as side dish

4 large golden beets, peeled and chopped
8 cippolini onions, peeled and left whole
6 fresh figs, rinsed and sliced in half
3 sprigs fresh thyme, leaves only
4 T. extra virgin olive oil
1/4 tsp. kosher salt
1/8 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

Method:
1. Wash and peel vegetables. Chop beets and place beets, cippolini onions and figs in a mixing bowl.

2. Add the thyme leave, extra virgin olive oil, salt and pepper to the vegetables in the bowl and toss thoroughly. Spread them out flat on a rimmed baking sheet or shallow roasting pan so that everything is in a single layer.

3. Cover the pan with aluminum foil and roast in the oven 40-45 minutes, until the beets are just fork-tender but not soft. Remove from the oven and serve immediately.