Leftover Cranberry Sauce Hacks
Sccchhhlllupt! Ah, the sound of jellied cranberry sauce coming out of a can. Here at the farm we often substitute other jams & jellies from our own harvests to accompany our turkey…sour cherry, elderberry, rosehip. For most home cooks it’s simple enough to turn fresh whole cranberries into fancy gourmet sauces…but tradition is tradition! Whenever we’ve invited friends who have children for Thanksgiving, we’re sure to serve the old familiar slippery, jiggly, jellied cylinder – even though we know we’ll have a ton left over. (It’s better to poke at than to eat.) So here are 12 “hacks” we developed in our own kitchen to use up the inevitable remaining 3/4 can of sauce…
CRAN-OSAS: Thanksgiving weekend brunches are sometimes even better than the big dinner. Melt your leftover cranberry jelly over very low heat with some orange juice, pour into an empty bottle, and store in fridge. Add a couple of teaspoons to a champagne glass and fill with bubbly.
BEEF STEW: Believe it or not, adding a little cranberry jelly to your hearty beef stew will make the gravy even richer and more flavorful. Simply cut your leftover cranberry jelly into ice cube size chunks and freeze. Add one “cube” whenever you make stew all winter long.
HORSERADISH CRANWICH SPREAD: Puree jelly, sour cream and horseradish (to taste) in your blender. Use it to zuzz up your leftover turkey sandwiches.
SMOOTHIES: Whiz a few tablespoons of leftover cranberry sauce with plain or vanilla yogurt (and some cinnamon honey if you wish) for a perfect autumn morning breakfast.
CRANAPPLE PIE: Replace half the sugar in the filling of your favorite apple pie recipe with an equal amount of leftover jellied cranberry sauce.
CRANBERRY GOAT CHEESE HAND PIE: Prepare and roll the dough in our hand-pie recipe. Fill with a scoop of fresh chevre, a teaspoon of cranberry sauce, and a generous sprinkle of freshly cracked black pepper. Bake according to recipe.
TART GLAZE: You know how tarts in fancy french bakeries always have that great shiny glaze? Usually they brush melted currant jelly over the top of their cooked tarts, but melted cranberry jelly works just as well.
CRANBERRY JELLY CORN MUFFINS: Prepare your favorite corn muffin batter. Fill muffin tins halfway, add a teaspoon of cranberry jelly, top with more batter and bake according to instructions.
FROZEN CRANBERRY POPS: Cut cylinder into wedges, insert popsicle stick, freeze on parchment lined baking sheet.
CRANBERRY BUTTER: Beat together unsalted butter and cranberry jelly in stand mixer for a wonderful compound butter for your morning toast.
BRAISED CABBAGE: Add a few teaspoons of cranberry sauce and a handful of golden raisins to your favorite braised cabbage recipe.
AUTUMN SUNDAE: Melt cranberry jelly over low heat and pour over butter pecan ice cream. Top with toasted hazelnuts and cinnamon whipped cream.
Do you have a hack for leftover cranberry sauce? Or an alternative to cranberry sauce for your Thanksgiving table? Or just a funny cranberry sauce family story? Let us know in the comment section below for a chance to win a signed copy of the Beekman 1802 Heirloom Cookbook. (Enter before midnight, Nov 19th. One comment per day, please. Winning comment will be chosen randomly.)
