What's Churnin' ?: Cranberry Fig Sauce

Cranberry sauce is a dish most commonly associated with Thanksgiving. Yes, cranberries were introduced to us by the Native Americans, and yes, it really does add flavor to an otherwise bland slab of turkey, but there is no reason that this tangy, sugary, and tart treat should only be enjoyed one day out of the year. If you are a 'sauce from the can' kind of person, then you really don't know what I'm talking about when I say this should become a staple in our everyday diets. There is nothing in your pantry like freshly cooked cranberry sauce that is layered with deep flavors and texture. When warm it is the perfect dressing to a scoop of vanilla ice cream, when cold it is divine mixed into your morning yogurt or spread on a piece of toast.

The foundation for my kind of cranberry sauce, soon to be your kind, is the use of fresh ingredients, and a combination of sweet, tart, and citrus. In order to build this, I choose to use fresh from the vine cranberries, an orange, and dried mission figs. All ingredients are tossed into a pot and reduced until a chunky and aromatic sauce forms with a deep crimson hue. As soon as you take that first bite, your mouth will be giddy over the layers of flavor and rolling textures, not to mention blushing from it's liaison with the cranberries.

This is the simplest sauce to make and will soon find a permanent spot in your refrigerator.

____ Recipe: Cranberry Fig Sauce ____

Ingredients:

12 oz. fresh cranberries (amounts to about 3.5 cups)

3/4 c sugar

1/3 c water

1/4 c juice from an orange

2 tsp orange zest

1 c chopped dried mission figs

S&P

Direction:

1. Bring all ingredients to a boil, stirring often

2. Reduce heat to medium low and simmer until most of the cranberries burst, you should hear them popping. Stir occassionally for about 10 minutes.