Submitted by: agcomm,  Wed Nov 26 10:13:38 1997


Prairie Fare: Take Advantage of the Redness
 
Graphic accompanies this column in hard copy and is available on
the World Wide Web at
http://www.ext.nodak.edu/extnews/newsrelease/graphics/pf112797.gi
f 
 
     The number of shopping days until Christmas is not the only
thing people should be counting down this time of year. To lovers
of fresh cranberries, my message is a simple one: enjoy this tart
fruit now because, come the new year, the best you can hope for
is the sweet sorrow of separation. If you don't get your fill of
fresh cranberries now, you'll be waiting until next fall to be
satisfied.
     Beyond being served as the traditional holiday side dish,
how can you enjoy this mouth-puckering native of North America?
Well, there are a host of cranberry relishes, of course, but you
already knew that. Gelatin salads too. 
     No, what I'm talking about here is trying something totally
new, maybe even outlandish. How about putting fresh cranberries
on a homemade pizza? You could skip the tomato-based pizza sauce
and instead spread a thin layer of honey-Dijon barbecue sauce
over the dough. Add cooked Canadian-style bacon, pineapple,
chopped green bell pepper and some diced purple onion. I'd
suggest coating wetted cranberries with a little brown sugar. I
tried this at home (the coating part, not the pizza-making part)
and was able to get enough brown sugar to stick to make the
combination work, as far as taste goes. I'd recommend using a
sharp grated cheddar for the cheese. You could even forget the
Canadian-style bacon and go vegetarian (fruititarian?). 
     Now remember, this is an experimental idea. The cranberries
may make the pizza a little juicier than usual, and depending how
you arrange the ingredients, exposed cranberries might pop juice
all over your oven. But hey, if you truly love cranberries, it
might be worth the effort. 
     Here's another more tested-idea: I saw a recipe recently for
cranberry compote, to use on ice cream. I suppose it would spoon
just as well over an angel food cake, though. For a compote, I'd
mix together cranberries and sugar in a 3-to-1 ratio, meaning 3
cups of cranberries for each cup of sugar. Add a little orange
juice or orange and lemon zest. 
     Here's another idea: reinvent a traditional apple salad. For
every cup of whole, fresh cranberries, add  cup of raisins,  
cup of chopped pecans, 1 cup of sliced bananas and 2 cups of
Golden Delicious apples. Make sure the bananas and apples have
been coated with lemon juice to prevent discoloration. Add enough
whipped-cream topping to this fruit-and-nut mixture to reach the
consistency you prefer.
     By now, I'm hoping you cranberry lovers have been motivated
to try something different this year. To that end, here's a
recipe I found on the Internet. Sorbet is something like ice
cream without the cream.
 
     Cranberry Sorbet
     From SOAR--the Searchable Online Archive of Recipes,
University of California,
Berkeley(http://soar.Berkeley.EDU/recipes/)
     Yield: 1 quart
     Ingredients: 
     2 cups cranberries
      cup fresh orange juice
     1 tablespoon grated orange zest
     3 cups water
     1 cup sugar
     1 tablespoon lemon juice
     Procedure:
Place berries, juice, zest and  cup of the water in a saucepan;
cook over medium heat until berries pop, for about five to seven
minutes. Coarsely mash berries.(You should have about 1 cups.)
Add sugar, lemon juice and remaining water. Simmer for about a
half hour, stirring often, until a syrup forms. Let cool, then
refrigerate for six hours or overnight. Freeze in an ice-cream
maker according to manufacturer's instructions. Store in an
airtight container in the freezer.
     What's Your Take on This, Julie?  
     Even die-hard ice cream fans might push aside their ice
cream bowls for this frozen creamy and refreshing treat. At 110
calories and 0.1 g fat (yes, you  read it right), it's a
cholesterol-free low-fat way to complete a hearty holiday meal.
It's also easy to make. 
     Cranberries are even more American than apple pie. They were
first named "craneberries" because the flower resembled the shape
of a crane's head and cranes often were seen nibbling this
ruby-colored fruit. Cranberries were among the first gifts the
Native Americans brought the pilgrims. The vibrant color was used
to dye rugs and blankets. 
     Cranberries contain about 45 calories a cup and also provide
vitamin C. In fact, American sailors carried barrels of
cranberries while at sea as their vitamin C source to prevent
scurvy. Fresh cranberries are usually available just in time for
the holidays, September to December. They can be refrigerated up
to a month, but they also freeze very well.  
     Here are some more ideas to enjoy their refreshing taste:
Try filling the center of an apple with cranberries, sugar and
cinnamon before baking, or add them to homemade applesauce in
equal proportions to the apples, sweetening to taste. For holiday
brunches and snacking, add cranberries to your favorite muffin
batter, a half cup of chopped cranberries sprinkled with two
tablespoons of granulated sugar for every six muffins.
     Cranberries are much more versatile than the wiggly jelly
that plunks out of a can onto a serving plate in time for dinner.
Try something new this holiday season. You might start another
tradition.
                              ###
NDSU Agriculture Communication
Sources: Dean Hulse (701) 231-6136
Julie Garden-Robinson (701) 231-7187