Cranberry Relish

So it is that time of year, time for turkey and cranberries.  This is one of those recipes that gets requested every year.  I don't mind making it since it tastes good and is super easy.  It changes every year as I get new ideas of what to add or ways to improve it.  This year I added ginger syrup to give it a bit of kick.  I know Thanksgiving has passed but you could make this anytime.  I eat turkey year round since it is one of my favorite proteins. 

1or 2 Navel Oranges
12 ounce bag of fresh cranberries (you can use frozen, just be sure to thaw them first)
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinncmon
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 cup ginger syrup (recipe follows)

Cut oranges, including peel and pith, into 1-inch pieces.  Put orange pieces and cranberries into a food processor and pulse until finely chopped.  Put into a bowl and add sugar, spices, and ginger syrup.  Stir until blended and chill for at least one day for flavors to develop.  I then usually taste the relish and add more sugar, ginger or spices if needed.  You can also add honey to this as well.  It really depends on how sweet you want it.  I didn't use honey this year since I added the ginger syrup.  I only used 1 orange this year since they were fairly large.  You can add or remove any ingredient to make this taste how you want it to.  Sorry no picture, it went fairly fast and I did not manage to get a photo before it was gone.

Ginger Syrup

Fresh ginger root
2 cups granulated sugar
1 1/2 cups water
1 1/2 teaspoon black peppercorns

Peel ginger and slice it thinly, you will need about 4 ounces for this recipe.  Place all ingredients into nonreactive saucepan and stir to combine.  Bring to gentle boil over medium-high heat.  When mixture boils, reduce heat and simmer until sugar is combined and the syrup is slightly thickened.  Remove from heat and remove ginger pieces.   Let cool completely, then strain into a container with tight fitting lid.  Keep refrigerated.  This will keep about 2-3 weeks, however it will lose its ginger kick as it ages.

This is a blending of 2 recipes I found on the internet.  I liked the peppercorns in the syrup, you couldn't taste them but they made the ginger flavor richer and more intense.  I used part in the cranberry relish and then made the rest into ginger soda.  I used about 1/4 cup syrup and a 12 ounce bottle of seltzer water.  When I ran out of seltzer I used carbonated mineral water (Pelligrino).  Either way it tasted great.  I am planning to make this again soon, I am thinking of adding cranberries and making more of a cranberry-ginger syrup.  it should make a nice festive holiday soda. 

Enjoy and have a great Holiday season.

WARNING: this recipe is highly addictive.

So I got this recipe for Chex mix from a friend.  She warned me that is is highly addictive but I figured how bad could it be?  I have made 2 batches in 3 days and none of it lasted long enough to get a photo of it.  I will try to take a picture when I make it next week for Thanksgiving.

It is super easy and smells wonderful too.

Rollergirl Chex mix

6-8 Tablespoons butter (I used 8)
2 Tablespoons GF soy sauce
2-3 Tablespoons Siracha sauce (the chile sauce in the bottle with the rooster) - I used 3 Tbs.
1 1/2 teaspoon seasoned salt (I used Lawry's)
3/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
9-10 cups Chex (obviously use the GF varieties)
Peanuts, GF pretzels, what ever else you might want to put in

Melt the butter then add all ingredients except the Chex and any other add ins.  Stir to combine.  Put Chex and whatever else you are putting in in a large bowl.  Add butter mixture and stir to coat Chex well.
Once combined, microwave for 2 minutes. Stir.  Microwave 1 minute.  Stir.  Microwave 30 seconds. Stir.  Continue microwaving in 30 second increments and stirring in between until mixture is brown and crispy.  Do not let it burn.  You can also put the mixture on a large cookie sheet in a 300 oven and heat it that way stirring often.  I like not turning on my oven and having it be ready in about 5 minutes. 

The mix is good hot but will crisp up a bit more when cooled.  Store in an air-tight container.

When I made it the first time I used the last of the GF pretzels I had plus some roasted, unsalted soy nuts and sunflower seeds.  The second time I made it I just used the soy nuts.  Either way it was delicious.  I made the first batch on Wednesday  and the second batch was gone by Saturday morning.

This is a wonderful snack, it has heat and flavor.  The downside it that you just can't stop eating it.

Enjoy!

Where did the year go?

So I just realized that it was November and I hadn't posted anything since the pumpkin muffins.  I haven't done much in the way of baking but with Thanksgiving coming up and since I do get a 3 day weekend I should have a lot of recipes to put up soon.  I did make some Chex mix this weekend, the recipe was so good and the results are so addictive.  I will try to get it up by the end of the week. 


I guess this post is a teaser for things to come...Spicy Chex crack mix, Chocolate chip cookies, Posole stew, Thanksgiving turkey and sides including my family's favorite alternative to stuffing, crystallized ginger and the wonderful cookies you can make with it.  This would be a good time for requests since this is the time of year that I tend to cook and bake more.

So sorry about the delay but stay tuned for more yummy things!