Cranberry sauce with red wine and figs

Tags

christmas, cranberries, cranberry sauce, figs, red wine, sauce, Thanksgiving, Turkey

Cranberry sauce is a very American accompaniment to Thanksgiving turkey. In fact, I had never eaten it until we moved to the US and then my first experience was at a dinner where the host served the jellied kind that comes straight out of a can, I hated it and could not imagine how an entire nation loved this vile tasting “sauce”. My ex-husband asked to have cranberry sauce with the turkey the following year and so I started searching out a recipe. Low and behold, I discovered that you can actually make your own, from fresh or frozen berries and you did not have to resort to eating jellied cylindrical shaped sauce – and to top it all, it is actually very easy and tastes far superior to any store bought variation. It is a great accompaniment to turkey and and I discovered with my leftovers this year, superb with foie gras. So make some for Christmas lunch and have the rest with your foie gras for New Year!

Ingredients:

1 cup (250ml) fruity red wine

1 cup (170g) diced dried figs, hard stems removed

12 ounces (340g) fresh or frozen cranberries

Zest of 2 oranges

3/4 cup (150g) sugar

1/8 teaspoon cinnamon

2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar

Preparation:

In a medium saucepan, heat the red wine and diced figs together 

Cover, remove from heat, and let stand 30 minutes
Drain the figs (keep the wine)
Return the wine to the saucepan
Add the cranberries, orange zest, sugar, and cinnamon and cook, covered, over medium heat until the cranberries have burst and are softened, about 10 minutes
Remove from heat
Add the figs and the vinegar to the cranberries

The sauce can be made up to one week ahead and refrigerated
Allow to return to room temperature before serving
Enjoy!