Thanksgiving Day Side Dish Homemade Cranberry Relish

Turkey Dinner at our house is served with a freshly homemade side dish of Cranberry Relish.

Cranberry Orange Walnut Relish

Cranberry Orange Walnut Relish

My recipe differs a little bit from most.  I like to wash the cranberries in cold water and then blanch them in boiling sugar water for about 8 minutes.  Blanching brings out the ruby red color of the cranberry and adds color to the table setting.  This recipe makes about 10-two tablespoon sized servings depending on the size of the fruit used…I also do not remove the seeds.

List of ingredients:

16 ounces fresh Ocean Spray Cranberries

1 large seedless navel orange and zest (separated)

1 cup of chopped walnuts

1 very large cored crisp apple (or 2 medium)

1 cup of sugar

1 Tbsp lemon juice (to prevent apples from browning)

Preparation Instructions:

Start by zesting the entire navel orange until about 1 Tbsp of zest is made and then set aside and keep chilled.

Peel the orange, removing the seeds and outer white pith

Peel and core the apple

Boil the cranberries in 2 cups of water mixed with one cup of sugar for 7-8 minutes

If you have a food grinder, use it on the coarse grind setting.  If not, use a food processor. Place the cranberries and orange in a food processor and pulse chop until cut into uniform pieces,  Most food processors do not have speed settings, but the objective is to grind the ingredients rather than puree them, so pulsing is the best method in a food processor.  A blender on a pulse setting achieves close to the same result as a grinder.

Dice the apple into small pieces, sprinkle some lemon juice over the apples to prevent browning.

Chop the walnuts into small pieces or use chopped walnuts

Combine all ingredients (except the orange peel zest) and stir to mix thoroughly.

Refrigerate until chilled.  Transfer to serving dish, and add the orange zest just before serving… Tart and tangy.

More Thanksgiving Day Dinner Recipes:

Gravy From Scratch,

Homemade Stuffing,

Moist Turkey Recipe,

Ambrosia,

Green Bean Casserole,

Sweet Potato Casserole,

Parker House Dinner Rolls,

Shopping List For Thanksgiving Dinner