If a foodie remake went into production of Jerry Maguire (possibly Jerry Puck?), the famous line might say, "You had me at Bourbon"...or, "You had me at Pear/Ginger”…or “You had me at Jalapeno/Lime/Tomatillos.” I write this because I too had reservations like Dorothy Boyd (Renee Zellweger), fears of what could be, an aversion to such a personal commitment—vulnerability. I found this leap unsavory, slippery—not as sweet as imagined...
Cranberry sauce…never tasted good getting to my belly, no matter on Thanksgiving or leftovers on sandwich days following. However, that ceased when we began messing with some of the sauce’s attributes, adding tasty ingredients and building unique recipes, including one specifically that…“had me at Mama Stamberg.”
Below, we offer you a no-fail basic cranberry sauce recipe plus seven more variations on the classic…
Basic Cranberry Sauce:
1-12 oz. bag fresh cranberries (about 3 cups)
3/4-cup sugar
1/4-cup brown sugar
3/4-cup water
1-tablespoon grated orange rind
1-teaspoon cinnamon
Wash and pick over cranberries. Place all ingredients in saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for about 15-20 minutes stirring often until most of the cranberries have burst open and the sauce begins to thicken.
Remove from heat and allow to cool.
Now for the good stuff… Here are several ideas and variations on the basic sauce:
Bourbon Cranberry Sauce:
Reduce the water to 1/2 cup and add to the saucepan:
1/2-cup Bourbon
1/4-cup Grand Marnier
Pear/Ginger Cranberry Sauce:
Add to the saucepan:
1 cup diced, peeled pears
2 tablespoons fresh, grated ginger
Famous Mama Stamberg Cranberry Sauce
Add to the already cooked cranberry sauce:
1-cup sour cream
1/2-cup red horseradish
Mascarpone, Honey, and Fig (with Walnuts) Cranberry Sauce
Replace the brown sugar in the basic sauce recipe with 1/2 cup honey.
Add 1 cup diced figs to the saucepan.
Add to the already cooked sauce:
1 cup Mascarpone
1 cup chopped walnuts (optional)
Jalapeno/Lime/Tomatillos Cranberry Sauce
Add to the saucepan:
Juice of 3 limes
2-tablespoons (or more to taste) finely chopped Jalapenos
1-cup diced tomatillos
Port and Green Peppercorns Cranberry Sauce
Reduce the water in basic sauce recipe to 1/2 cup.
Add to the saucepan:
3/4-cup Port
3-tablespoons Green Peppercorns
Leeks, Goat Cheese, and Fresh Thyme Cranberry Sauce
Add to the already cooked basic sauce:
1-cup sautéed leeks
2-tablespoons chopped thyme
1-cup crumbled goat cheese
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