Homemade Cranberry sauce cannot be beaten, there is nothing better than a huge dollop of the fruity stuff on your Turkey, or better yet smothered over your christmas left overs and lodged between to slices of crusty bread. Cranberry sauce is the most important condiment for the Great British Christmas dinner in my opinion. The very curious think about cranberry sauce is that everybody likes their cranberry sauce differently, my Grandfather likes it made with less sugar and very tart, my mother likes it with an orangey background flavour. I haven't written a specific recipe, more a blueprint to your own taste buds that you can adapt to your families palate. Cranberry sauce is insanely easy to make and so much more rewarding than opening a jar.
You will need:
The zest and juice of two oranges (zest first then juice)
125g of caster sugar
1 tsp of all spice
250g of frozen cranberries
a pinch of salt
a tsp of triple sec
Mix all of the above ingredients together in a pan, place a lid on the pan and cook on a medium heat for 10-15 minutes, until the cranberries have broken down. If you prefer your cranberry sauce sweeter add a tablespoon more of sugar until you reach the right level of sweetness.
I know the words Chilli and Jam may not go together for some people, nor does it seem like a very appetising pairing, but if you love chillies like I do, this may possibly change your life. Give me a strong blue cheese and some chilli jam any day of the week. A lot of my friends are under the impression that because I love to cook I would be very picky and expect the creme de la creme of cuisine, however I'm the total opposite. Yes I love good food, but simplicity is often the best, you can keep your fancy cheffy ways because when it boils down to it quality wins over technique every time. I happen to think the heat and sweetness of this jam compliments any strong cheese. Jam is not to be feared this is hugely forgiving and can be used in such a lot of things. This is for all you chilli addicts.
You will need:
1kg of jam sugar (with added pectin)
50ml of water
150ml of white vinegar
2 tablespoons of deseeded scotch bonnet chillies and finely chopped
2 finely chopped red romano peppers
3 tbsp of chopped garlic
2 1/2 tsp of maldon sea salt
1 tsp of chopped marjoram or thyme
the juice of one lime
Place all of the above items into a pan and cook for 20-25 minutes on a medium heat. That's all folks.
