Until a few short years ago, I wouldn’t have known a fresh cranberry if one ate me for breakfast. And now, I eat THEM for breakfast! My, my, how the tables turn when time flies by. Here are a couple of fresh cranberry-inspired recipes I’ve been experimenting with lately.
Cranberry Oatmeal
Ingredients:
- 1/4 Cup fresh cranberries
- 1/4 Cup rolled oats
- 1 Walnut
- Milk
- 1 Dollop plain yogurt
- Ground cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, and allspice
Directions:
- Tune into to your favorite Hawaiian radio station for some delightful breakfast music.
- Fill up a small pot with about an inch of water. Boil the cranberries in the water until they begin to pop. Turn the burner to low and let the cranberries simmer until most of the water has evaporated and the cranberries reduce, becoming jelly-like.
- Add the oats to a different small pot, and adjust the heat to a high setting, letting them toast briefly before adding 1/2 cup of water.
- Add cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, and allspice to the oatmeal, to taste.
- Cook the oatmeal on medium heat for 5-10 minutes.
- While the oatmeal is cooking and the cranberries are simmering, lightly toast the walnuts in a pan over low heat.
- Take the oatmeal down to a low heat setting, and add a splash of milk.
- Serve the oatmeal topped with cranberry reduction, a dollop of yogurt, and toasted walnuts.
(Serves one.)
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Fresh Vegetables with Cranberry Dressing
For the dressing
Ingredients:
- 1/4 Cup fresh cranberries
- 2 tsp Honey mustard
- Balsamic vinegar
- Unsweetened soymilk
- 1 Spritz of lemon juice
- 2 Healthy spoonfuls of plain yogurt
- Ground ginger
- Black pepper
Directions:
- Turn on some old-timey swing music, or alternatively, R&B.
- Fill up a small pot with about an inch of water. Boil the cranberries in the water until they begin to pop. Turn the burner to low and let the cranberries simmer until most of the water has evaporated and the cranberries reduce, becoming jelly-like.
- Place the cranberry reduction in a small food processor or blender. Add honey mustard, yogurt, lemon juice, soymilk, and balsamic vinegar. The soymilk and vinegar will serve to thin out the dressing, so gently incorporate these ingredients until you achieve your preferred consistency.
- Add ginger and pepper to taste. Blend until smooth.
For the salad
Ingredients:
- A broccoli floret or two
- 1 Decently sized chunk of butternut squash
- 4 Baby bella mushrooms
- 2 Roma tomatoes
- Fresh spinach
- Napa cabbage
- 2 Walnuts
Directions:
- Chop up the squash and and steam or boil with the broccoli floret(s) until soft.
- While the squash and broccoli are steaming, chop up the mushrooms, tomatoes, and walnuts.
- Combine chopped vegetables, walnuts, and steamed squash with fresh spinach and napa cabbage in a bowl.
- Top with cranberry dressing, garnished with the broccoli floret(s).
(Serves one.)
Interesting Facts (?) about Cranberries
- The OceanSpray commercials that feature cranberry farmers wading in bogs of floating cranberries propagate the misconception that cranberries grow in flooded conditions. In actuality, cranberry beds are only flooded twice a year. Once, during harvest season, to facilitate the cropping and retrieving of the berries, and again in the winter, to protect the shrubs from freezing.
- Apparently, you don’t mess around with OceanSpray employees.
- Wisconsin is the leading producer of cranberries in the United States. Every fall, a cranberry festival is held in Warrens, Wisconsin, aptly titled “Cranfest“.
- For some reason, OceanSpray is the only brand of fresh cranberries in the grocery store 99% of the time (based on my own observations). Why is that?
Tags: cranberries, oatmeal, salad dressing