With the holiday season approaching quickly, I want to share some of my grandmother’s favorite recipes. She sent me two of her signature recipes, which she makes for our family every year. Both of them were published in Bon Appetit magazine’s 1996 Thanksgiving issue. The first is her cranberry sauce with apricots, raisins, and orange, and the second is her cranberry-walnut pie. Both of these recipes are delicious, and I would recommend trying them yourself this holiday season.
To make my grandmother’s cranberry sauce, you will need four cups of cranberries, two cups of sugar, one cup of chopped dried apricots, one cup of golden raisins, two cups of orange juice, and some grated orange peel. Begin by combining all of the ingredients in a large pot. Then, put the pot over medium heat and stir until the sugar is dissolved. Next, boil the ingredients and continue stirring. Gently smash the cranberries until they pop, which should take about ten minutes. Transfer the cranberries to a bowl to cool. When the cranberry sauce is first put in the bowl, it may be more of a liquid, but don’t worry. As the mixture cools, it will harden into the perfect consistency.
For the cranberry-walnut pie, you will need ½ cup of packed golden brown sugar, two large eggs, ¾ cup pure maple syrup, two tablespoons of melted butter, one tablespoon of vanilla extract, ¼ teaspoon of salt, two cups of chopped walnuts, one cup of chopped cranberries, and whipped cream. The whipped cream can be store-bought or homemade, but I prefer Cool Whip on my pie. The same goes for the pie crust, as you can make it from scratch, but my grandmother prefers to use a store-bought pie crust. To begin, preheat your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit and put your baking rack on the bottom of the oven. Next, butter a nine-inch glass pie dish and place your crust into the container, trimming as needed. Make sure the crust is frozen, whether you made it from scratch or not. To make the pie filling, whisk the sugar and eggs together in a large bowl until they are thoroughly beaten together. Next, mix in the maple syrup, butter, vanilla, and salt. Add the cranberries and walnuts to the mixture and transfer the mixture to the crust. Bake the pie for ten minutes and then reduce the heat to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and bake for about 35 more minutes. Then move the pie to the rack to cool and be sure to be careful, as the dish will be very hot. Finally, add your whipped cream to the pie and serve.
I hope you will enjoy these recipes during the incoming holidays, and that they will bring you and your family joy. My grandmother was so excited to share her cooking with our community, and we both hope you will give them a try. We wish you a happy holiday season and happy cooking.