The Forgotten Stepchild – Cranberry Chutney

At Thanksgiving, the cranberry sauce doesn’t get a whole lot of respect. It’s different than the show off roast turkey, the over-achieving first child of the holiday. Nor is it like mashed potatoes, so smooth, buttery, and creamy, the youngest child who gets away with everything, its siblings having paved the way. Cranberry sauce isn’t even similar to stuffing, the quirky middle child of Thanksgiving, lovable, but different and misunderstood in a million ways. Cranberry sauce is comparable to the forgotten stepchild. There have even been years when, like a really bad step parent, I have forgotten to take the cranberry sauce out of the refrigerator at feast time, leaving it in its room while everyone else enjoyed the party.

Many people ignore cranberry sauce altogether, skipping it entirely on their plate. Others are satisfied with the can shaped stuff, not because they like it, but because they feel some sort of obligation to take a token spoonful. Yet I think cranberry sauce deserves more respect. I love the sweet-tart flavor, and its acidity does an admirable job of balancing the richness of all that butter and gravy. Plus, it adds color to the plate, making it more interesting.

For years I prepared the cranberry-orange relish that used to be on the back of a bag of cranberries. (1 bag cranberries, 1 unpeeled naval orange, cut up and seeded, ¾ to 1 cup sugar – all ground up in a food processor.) I love it. Fresh and bracing, simple to prepare. But still overlooked by most. There were always leftovers.

This year for our Early Thanksgiving dinner I decided to try to give the cranberries a little more attention, so I prepared a cranberry chutney. Really not that different than cranberry sauce, but more spicy and refreshing. Far more interesting than usual, I figured it would call out to people.

It was successful in every way that I imagined, but one. While it was the exact flavor profile for which I was searching and complemented the rest of the meal beautifully as expected, our guests still treated it as the forgotten stepchild. They didn’t exactly ignore it, but it was nowhere near the star of the show. I had just as much cranberry chutney leftover as I do cranberry sauce or relish any other year. But that won’t stop me from claiming it as a success. Just because others don’t understand or appreciate the cranberry component of the meal, it still shines in my eyes.

This year, if you feel obliged to serve cranberries in some form on your Thanksgiving table, why not conduct a little experiment? Try this delicious cranberry chutney and see if your guests notice the difference or if they continue to treat cranberries like the forgotten stepchild.

Cranberry Chutney

In this recipe for Cranberry Chutney I simply replace cranberries for most of the apples in the Apple Chutney recipe from the classic Moosewood Cookbook. It is simple to prepare, simmering on the stove and only requiring a quick stir every so often, while you complete other kitchen tasks. And it can be prepared days ahead of time, smoothing out your game plan amid the chaos on Thanksgiving Day.

Makes about 3 cups, 1 hour plus chilling time

1-12 oz. bag fresh cranberries

1 cooking apple, cored and chopped (no need to peel)

1 clove garlic, minced or pressed

1 Tbsp. ginger, minced

½ cup orange juice

1 tsp. cinnamon

1 tsp. cloves

1 tsp. salt

1 cup honey

¾ cup cider vinegar

½ tsp cayenne pepper, or more to taste

1. Combine all ingredients in a heavy saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, and simmer uncovered, about 45 minutes, stirring occasionally.
2. Allow to cool before storing in a clean container in the refrigerator.

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