Cranberries are not just for Thanksgiving in my world. Whenever they are available – I put them to use. Growing up in Russia, they were a rare and valuable commodity – they weren’t cultivated so the only time we could eat them was a small window in the late fall or early winter in the north of the country, after the lingonberry season. They grew in the bogs, and wet dark woods, and were a real pain, if not to say dangerous, to pick. We had to go sift through the soft moss, and I remember several times slipping and getting my leg stuck in the soppy green goo… the only good part in that process was the fact that mosquito season was over. To get the best berries, we waited until first snow and picked those that were showing through the snow, freezing our fingers off. They were softer, slightly wrinkly and really sour. Folks believed they had the best health properties; for some reason the hard berries that everyone is familiar with in this country weren’t considered good for picking.
Cranberry sauce is one of the easier things to make at home, and I’ve never even considered buying it pre-made. I’ve tried a gazillion recipes and enjoyed most of them; the ones I didn’t like were too sweet so I just made it a habit to reduce the amount of sugar the recipes call for.
Having a husband who brews beer at home, I have been learning a lot about beer, fermentation and all things food chemistry, so when we came across a cranberry sauce that included beer (from Sierra Nevada blog) – I got very curious. The tartness of cranberries seems to go natural with the clovy, banana sweetness of a Hefeweizen, a cloudy German wheat beer that a lot of folks in these parts like to drink with lemon or orange slices. I happen to have home-brewed Hefeweizen on tap in the basement, complements of my other half, but if you are like most folks and have to actually purchase beer (and I can list a number of reasons why I’d rather be you!), grab a pack of Kellerweis, Ayinger Brauweisse, or Hacker-Pschorr Hefe Weisse. You’ll appreciate the taste while you are making the sauce and sipping on the beer.
HOW TO MAKE CRANBERRY SAUCE WITH BEER AND ORANGE
Ingredients
1/2 cup Hefeweizen beer
3 cups (12 ounces) fresh cranberries
1 cup raw cane sugar
1 orange, juiced
Zest of 1/2 orange
Instructions
Combine beer, cranberries, sugar, orange juice, and orange zest in a pot.
Bring to boil, turn to low, and simmer for 15 minutes.
Chill for a few hours, or overnight.
- 1/2 cup Hefeweizen beer
- 3 cups (12 ounces) fresh cranberries
- 1 cup raw cane sugar
- 1 orange, juiced
- Zest of 1/2 orange
- Combine beer, cranberries, sugar, orange juice, and orange zest in a pot.
- Bring to boil, turn to low, and simmer for 15 minutes.
- Chill for a few hours, or overnight.
