Cooking Light (November 2015)
We all know the traditional story of the first Thanksgiving: The Pilgrims, battered by hardships in the New World, gathered together with their new friends, the proud and noble Native Americans, to share a feast of harvest bounty. They joined hands in spirit of kinship and surveyed the cornucopia laid out before them -- the roast turkey, the plentiful vegetables, the maize.
And then the Puritan Governor William Bradford turned to his newfound brother, Massasoit, the leader of the Wampanoag people, and was like, "You guys think this cranberry sauce could use some blueberries?"
Yes, this cranberry sauce from Cooking Light strives to answer that age-old question, a query that Americans have been pondering since all the way back in 1621: Do blueberries belong on the Thanksgiving table?
We're here to tell you: They don't.
The inspiration for this recipe comes from Erin French at Lost Kitchen in Freedom, Maine, which is a restaurant we really want to try. (We actually wanted to go there when we were in Portland and Belfast a few months ago, but we couldn't get a reservation.)
We were really intrigued by the idea of blueberries in a cranberry sauce. What an interesting spin!
The problem is, between the blueberries, the sugar, the mirin (which is a sweetened Japanese rice cooking wine) and the sugared ginger, this sauce is disconcertingly, cloyingly sweet. It tastes like jam. And that, friends, is a strange flavor alongside turkey and dressing.
So if you want to make this sauce, serve it for dessert (it would be great spooned over shortbread, with a dollop of cream) or smear it on toast for breakfast.
But skip it for Thanksgiving dinner. (Consider making this Bourbon-Mint Cranberry Sauce or this Nutty Cranberry Relish instead.)
Cran-Blueberry Sauce with Candied Ginger
Cooking Light (November 2015), recipe by Robin Bashinsky
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Nutritional information available at Cooking Light
(This photo: Brian Woodcock/Cooking Light; styling: Paige Hicks)
Total time: 40 mins
Servings: 16 (serving size: about 1/4 cup)
INSTRUCTIONS
1 navel orange
4 cups fresh or frozen cranberries
2 cups fresh blueberries
1 cup mirin
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup minced crystallized ginger
2 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme
1 tablespoon grated peeled fresh ginger
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
DIRECTIONS
Remove rind from orange in strips using a vegetable peeler, being careful to avoid the white pith. Combine rind and remaining ingredients in a large saucepan over medium heat; bring to a simmer. Reduce heat to low; simmer 25 minutes or until cranberries burst and mixture thickens to a jammy consistency. Remove rind; discard. Cool slightly.
