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.