Easy Holiday Cranberry Sauce

Growing up, I did not understand the cranberry thing at Thanksgiving. When the large part of the family got together, there would be a couple of small dishes on the table, each containing a deep red cylinder with ridges that strongly resembled the shape of a can...but people were actually eating from it! There were even times when the cylinder was horizontal & sliced on the ridges so folks could get a disc of the cranberry loaf.

Even as a kid, it never seemed appetizing to me. I think, in my young mind, they might have been beets or something. I just know that there was no way I was gonna have any of that!

Now, I would drink things like Ocean Spray's Cran-Apple or Cran-Grape juices. Eventually I'd have to make the jump to straight up cranberry juice now & then due to some...uh...issues. But I don't mind cranberry juice. And you know what? I never associated the juice of cranberry to be from the same source as the cranberry loaf! So I obviously was OK with them.

I also remember stringing actual cranberries with popcorn for a school Christmas tree. They were pretty beads, in my young mind. I never put it together that those are where I liked the juice from...and cringed from the gel loaf it made.

Not too long ago, I came across the easiest cranberry sauce EVER! I made some at the house & the family might have thought I was a genius! Or just crafty for half of a moment...whatever. But they really liked it & do ask for it sometimes!

The recipe I found was on Pinterest by One Good Thing by Jillee. (recipe HERE) So easy; so divine.

But, with it being the holidays, and having apple cider to work with (I love using apple cider during the fall in recipes!), I thought I'd use some of that for our Thanksgiving gathering.

So, here's what I did...

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EASY HOLIDAY CRANBERRY SAUCE

Ingredients:

1 bag fresh cranberries (like Ocean Spray)

1/2 C apple cider or juice

1/4 C granulated sugar

1/4 C brown sugar

1 T apple pie spice

Directions:

~ in a sauce pan (which I sprayed with vegetable oil cooking spray first), add the cranberries

~ pour in the liquid, the sugars & the spice

~ stir until well mixed

~ turn on the burner until the mixture is boiling, stirring occasionally

~ once boiling, turn to low heat as the cranberries continue to pop (the skins will burst...and it's so cool) & break down

~ I like to mash up the berries as I stir it, but it should be turning a beautiful red color & into a great chunky sauce

~ after about 15 minutes, total, on the heat, remove from the heat & allow to rest as the sauce settles a bit

~ serve warm (my family's fave), at room temp, or chill it in the fridge & add some whipped cream to the top

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Oh man, this is so yummy!!!! And my youngest even helped out.

I'm looking forward to Christmas so I can make it with orange juice instead of the cider. Or I might mix 'em. We shall see. 

I know some people like to throw in some walnuts or pecans, too. Totally optional. I love the sauce as it is.

Oh, and by the way, a big gathering meant doubling the recipe. That also insured some leftovers!

Now it's your turn!

ENJOY!

De[con]Structed French Toast

Lately, I've been looking for easier (lazier) recipes to fix. We have super-crazy schedules right now, so finding meals with a lot of steps to it is just nearly out of the question! But...what if I could just do something nice, tasty, but with very little work? Like maybe not even having to mix much of anything?

I came across some recipes in "deconstructed" form. Basically, it's your favorite meals/dishes that you just layer instead of mix together. And I'm game!

So, I'm thinking about starting a whole new category of recipes based on this idea. And, since I tend to tear things up & make them look demolished instead...I like the thought of having them "destructed".

Today, I bring you the first recipe in the De[con]Structed series...and it's breakfast!

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DE[con]STRUCTED FRENCH TOAST

Ingredients:

1 slice slightly-stale bread
1 egg
1/2 T cinnamon
1 T brown sugar
2 drops (1/4 t) vanilla extract
3 T milk
1/2 T sugar
1 pinch ground nutmeg


Directions:

~ preheat oven to 350 degrees F

~ in a small baking dish or ramekin dish, spray with cooking spray, then place your slightly stale bread in the bottom (may want to tear in half or into smaller pieces)

~ sprinkle with cinnamon & brown sugar

~ crack the egg, leaving the yolk in tact (if possible), on top of the bread

~ in a tiny glass (like a shot glass), pour in the vanilla & milk, then swirl to mix

~ carefully pour the vanilla milk over the eggs & bread

~ sprinkle it all with the sugar & nutmeg

~ place the baking dish into the oven; 20 minutes for softer yolks, 30 minutes for harder yolks

~ when the French toast is done, pull out of the oven

~ top it with powdered sugar &/or maple syrup, if desired

~ serve


Yield: 1

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I doubled this since I like having a couple of slices at once. Plus, I used slightly stale Pepperidge Farms brown sugar & cinnamon swirl bread. The brown sugar & cinnamon were already in it.

However, all of the measurements are approximate. Just eyeball it according to your taste!

Now then, if you are concerned that the 20-30 minutes is too long for you in the morning, just think: you can layer your stuffs, place it in the oven, go get ready, then have a hot breakfast ready to go!
TA-DA!

Also, this form of "deconstruction" is very elegant & minimalist...so it creates a gorgeous presentation.

Imagine doing a few of these for a brunch! YUM!!

ENJOY!

Easy Orange Chicken

My youngest surprised us by saying he really likes one of the lunches from school. And it's certainly one that I never would have realized & am proud of him for trying! He gets very excited when the school lunch menu reads that it's gonna be Tangerine Chicken.

Not too long ago, my youngest wanted to know if we can have it at home, too. Hmmm...I started trying to research it. I did find some recipes for it to try. I attempted one in the lazy cooker, and it didn't turn out well at all! Plus it took a lot of extra work that I didn't want to do.

However, we were willing to try it again...but I was not willing to search far & wide, or even pay more to get tangerine anything. But I did have some orange marmalade hanging around...so I decided to try an orange chicken. And after doing some looking into some recipes & figuring out what might work better for us, here's what I came up with:

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EASY ORANGE CHICKEN

Ingredients:

1 bag breaded chicken chunks (I used popcorn chicken & some leftover chicken nuggets)
1 jar orange marmalade
1/2 C barbecue sauce (I used KC Masterpiece Original)
1/4 C orange juice
2-3 T cornstarch
1/4 C sweet & sour sauce
3 T soy sauce
3 T teriyaki sauce
2 T ground ginger
1 T garlic powder
1 T onion powder
2 T chili powder
1/2 C mandrin orange slices with syrup
1-2 T dried orange peel or zest of orange
1-2 palms full of sesame seeds


Directions:

Cook chicken in the oven to package directions

Place remaining ingredients in a large pot & bring to a boil on medium heat

Once orange sauce is boiling, lower to a simmer & stir occasionally

Once chicken is done in the oven, pull out & add to the sauce in the large pot

Be sure to coat the chicken chunks, thoroughly, with the orange sauce

Serve


Yield: 4-6

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Oh. My. Yum.

Serve this chicken with steamed rice (we used speedy quick Minute Rice). Even serve it on top of the rice! And it's beautiful!!

My youngest got seconds! That's a huge win! HUGE!! And my hubby was equally impressed. YEA!

So, we will be serving it again. And it would be an easy one to fix up for something like Chinese New Year.

Very happy to be adding another one to the dinner rotations!

Oh...and the popcorn chicken was SO good to use with it!!

ENJOY!