Welcome to The Freshman Cook and my second recipe for Cranberry Week! Today I am sharing my Cranberry Chutney recipe. If you haven't had chutney, you may be wondering what it is.
Chutney is a dish that falls somewhere between jam and a relish. It is made by slowly cooking the ingredients on the stovetop at a low temperature causing it to develop a dense texture.
Another great thing about chutney, other than its amazing taste, is the ability it has to meld the flavors together, over time. It tastes best if it is stored for a day or two before eating. So making it ahead of when you want to serve is a big plus when the holidays come around.
Cranberry Chutney
(feeds 12 )
(printable recipe at end of page)
1 cup Water
1/4 cup Apple Cider Vinegar
1/2 cup granulated Sugar
1/2 cup light brown Sugar
1- 12 ounce bag of Cranberries
1 cup fresh Orange, chopped
1/2 cup fresh Apple, peeled and chopped
1/2 cup golden Raisins
1/2 teaspoon ground Cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground Cloves
1/2 teaspoon ground Ginger
Using a medium saucepan on medium high heat, mix together the water, apple cider vinegar, and white and brown sugar. Stir the ingredients and bring them to a simmer.
Peel, slice and then chop the orange pieces into small bites. Peel the apple, and chop into the same size pieces.
Add the cranberries, orange, apple, and raisins to the saucepan and stir together. Add the cloves, cinnamon and ginger, then stir until completely combined. Bring the chutney to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium. Simmer the chutney over medium heat until the mix thickens, and the fruit has softened, approx. 10-15 minutes.
Pour the chutney into a bowl and cover it with plastic wrap. Let the chutney cool before serving or refrigerating.
Thanks so much for stopping by today! For more fun and tasty recipes made with cranberry, check out this list to see what the #CranberryWeek group bloggers made to celebrate this week.
Welcome to Cranberry Week!
This week we are celebrating all things cranberry! We have delicious recipes from across the country to celebrate all things cranberry!
#CranberryWeek is an annual blogging event that is hosted by Ashley from Cheese Curd In Paradise
This homemade Cranberry Chutney makes the perfect party treat for a holiday party! So full of flavor, and easy to make! A great make ahead appetizer.
Ingredients
Cranberry Chutney
1 cup Water
1/4 cup Apple Cider Vinegar
1/2 cup granulated Sugar
1/2 cup light brown Sugar
1- 12 ounce bag of Cranberries
1 cup fresh Orange, chopped
1/2 cup fresh Apple, peeled and chopped
1/2 cup golden Raisins
1/2 teaspoon ground Cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground Cloves
1/2 teaspoon ground Ginger
Instructions
Cranberry Chutney
Using a medium saucepan on medium high heat, mix together the water, apple cider vinegar, and white and brown sugar. Stir the ingredients and bring them to a simmer.
Peel, slice and then chop the orange pieces into small bites. Peel the apple, and chop into the same size pieces.
Add the cranberries, orange, apple, and raisins to the saucepan and stir together. Add the cloves, cinnamon and ginger, then stir until completely combined. Bring the chutney to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium. Simmer the chutney over medium heat until the mix thickens, and the fruit has softened, approx. 10-15 minutes.
Pour the chutney into a bowl and cover it with plastic wrap. Let the chutney cool before serving or refrigerating.
I am so glad you are here!! This week I will be sharing three recipes with you, all of them containing cranberries in some way or another. I am joining a group of bloggers that are also sharing cranberry recipes. The week is for sharing inspiration and tasty ideas for a great Thanksgiving! Enjoy!
I created these Cranberry Pecan Cake Balls in the tradition of the dessert cake balls, but I really think they make amazing appetizers also. Instead of using icing to cover the cake balls, they are not covered at all, except for a few sprinkles.
The batter can be made ahead of time, by 2-3 days, and refrigerated until you are ready to bake. I baked these muffins in an air fryer. It was quick and easy. Of course you can bake them in your oven, and I have included directions for both methods.
Cranberry Pecan Cake Balls
(makes 20-25 cake balls)
(printable recipe at end of page)
3 cups all purpose Flour
1 cup Sugar
1 tbl. Baking Powder
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1/4 teaspoon baking Soda
2 teaspoons finely shredded orange peel
1 beaten Egg
1 2/3 cup Milk
1/4 cup cooking Oil
1 cup chopped fresh cranberries
3/4 cup chopped Pecans
bag of white chocolate chips
small sticks to hold cake balls
Sprinkles
In a large mixing bowl mix the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, orange peel and baking soda. Make a well in the center of the bowl, and set aside.
In a medium size bowl mix together the egg, milk and oil, the chopped pecans and chopped cranberries. Pour contents of the bowl into the dry ingredients.
Set your air fryer or oven temperature to 350 degrees. I made these in muffin cups because we are in the middle of moving at the moment, and they are what I had available. They worked perfectly, and they took 5-6 minutes to cook. If you are using an oven, they should take approx. 12 minutes. Let them cool completely.
Make all of the muffins. I like this recipe because if you need to stop before you are done baking, just put anything perishable in the fridge and everything else in a zip lock bag or a container to keep the muffins fresh. Come back to them when you can!
Place muffins in the zip lock bag until it is about half full. Close the bag. From the outside first, begin to crush the muffins into small pieces. As the muffins transform into small pieces, place the pieces into a large mixing bowl. Continue to crush the cake into the small pieces until all the pieces are crushed and in the plastic bag.
While you are crushing the muffins, heat a cup of the white chocolate chips, on low, until they are melted.
As the white chocolate melts and then cools, start to add a little at atime to the crushed muffins in the bag. Integrate the white chocolate into the crushed muffins by squeezing on the outside of the bag to mix it all together. By adding a little at a time, you won't end up with a mushy cake ball. As you mix in the white chocolate you should see it disappear into the mix. You should also get a feel for how much more white chocolate you might need. You want the white chocolate to help form the ball. As you form the balls, the white chocolate should disappear into the ball itself. Refrigerate the balls if you need to stop until another time to finish these.
I wanted to add a bit of color to the pops, so I dipped the very bottom edge into a bowl of autumn nonpareils. I didn't want to dip the entire cake ball into frosting. The flavor of the cake is amazing and I was worried it would hide the flavor. This worked great. The nonpareils give a pop of flavor, but don't overshadow the incredible fresh flavor of the cake balls. Also, the nonpareils stuck to the cake balls with no frosting or anything to hold them on.
Thank you for stopping by today for day 1 of #CranberryWeek! I hope you are having fun checking out all the recipes. On Wednesday, stop by for a Cranberry Chutney recipe and on Friday, I will have a Cranberry and Brie Wonton recipe to share! YUM!
Scroll down for a printable recipe that makes this recipe easier to follow, and scroll down to find a list of all of my blogging friends that posted amazing cranberry recipes today! Have fun!
Welcome to Cranberry Week!
This week we are celebrating all things cranberry! We have delicious recipes from across the country to celebrate all things cranberry!
#CranberryWeek is an annual blogging event that is hosted by Ashley from Cheese Curd In Paradise
Here's a printable copy of the recipe! Enjoy it, and let me know what you think!
cranberries, pecans, cake balls, white frosting, air fryer recipe, oven recipe, fall treats, appetizers, desserts, make ahead
dessert or appetizer
American
Yield: 20-25 cake balls
Author: The Freshman Cook
Cranberry Pecan Cake Balls
These fun cake balls are perfect as an appetizer or a dessert. They can be made ahead of time, making the day of your event a little less stressful.
Ingredients
Cranberry Pecan Cake Balls
3 cups all purpose Flour
1 cup Sugar
1 tbl. Baking Powder
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1/4 teaspoon baking Soda
2 teaspoons finely shredded orange peel
1 beaten Egg
1 2/3 cup Milk
1/4 cup cooking Oil
1 cup chopped fresh cranberries
3/4 cup chopped Pecans
bag of white chocolate chips
small sticks to hold cake balls
Sprinkles
Instructions
In a large mixing bowl mix the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, orange peel, baking soda. Make a well in the center of the bowl, and set aside. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients.
In a medium size bowl mix together the egg, milk and oil, the chopped pecans and chopped cranberries. Pour contents of the bowl into the bowl with the dry ingredients.
Set your air fryer or oven temperature to 350 degrees. I made these in muffin cups because we are in the middle of moving at the moment, and they are what I had available. They worked perfectly, and they took 5-6 minutes to cook. If you are using an oven, they should take approx. 12 minutes. Let them cool completely.
Make all of the muffins. This recipe is great, because if you need to stop before you are done baking, just put anything perishable in the fridge and everything else in a zip lock bag or a container that will keep the muffins fresh. Come back to them when you can!
Place muffins in the zip lock bag until it is about half full. Close the bag. From the outside first, begin to crush the muffins into small pieces. As the muffins transform into small pieces, place the pieces into a large mixing bowl. Continue to crush the cake into the small pieces until all the pieces are crushed and in the plastic bag.
While you are crushing the muffins, heat some of the white chocolate chips, on low, until they start to melt and then mix them together.
As the white chocolate melts and then cools, start to add a little at a time to the crushed muffins in the bag. Integrate the white chocolate into the crushed muffins by squeezing on the outside of the bag to mix it all together. By adding a little at a time, you won't end up with a mushy cake ball. As you mix in the white chocolate you should see it disappear into the mix. You should also get a feel for how much more white chocolate you might need. You want the white chocolate to help form the ball. It should disappear into the ball itself. Refrigerate the balls if you need to stop until another time to finish these.
I wanted to add a bit of color to the pops, so I dipped the very bottom edge into a bowl of autumn nonpareils. I didn't want to dip the entire cake ball into frosting. The flavor of the cake is amazing and I was worried it would hide the flavor. This worked great. The nonpareils give a pop of flavor, but don't overshadow the incredible fresh flavor of the cake balls. Also, the nonpareils stuck to the cake balls with no frosting or anything to hold them on.
I hope you found lots of great recipes this week during #CranberryWeek, but I have one more for you that you will love. Cranberry Pecan Biscotti! Easy to make, this dipping cookie is the perfect treat to give as gifts for the holidays! Full of dried cranberries and chopped pecan pieces, this cookie is then dipped in your favorite chocolate for ultimate flavor enjoyment. Try these cookies. You will be glad you did!
Cranberry Pecan Biscotti (makes 10-15 pieces) (printable recipe at end of page)
2 cups all purpose Flour 1 1/2 teaspoons Baking Powder 3/4 cup Sugar 1/2 cup unsalted Butter 1 teaspoon grated Lemon Zest 1/4 teaspoon Salt 2 large Eggs 3/4 cup chopped Pecans (small pieces) 2/3 cup dried Cranberries 1 bag of mini semi sweet Chocolate Chips 2-3 tablespoons Heavy Whipping Cream
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Whisk flour and baking powder in bowl. Set aside.
Beat sugar and butter together in large mixing bowl. Add lemon zest and salt into bowl and blend. Add eggs in, one at a time.
Add flour mix and beat until blended.
Add dried cranberries and chopped pecans to the batter.
Stretch dough onto baking sheet and pat out dough until it becomes a log measuring 13" long and 3" wide.
Bake about 30-35 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool for about 20-30 minutes.
Make sure biscotti is cooled. Cut the biscotti into 1/2" wide pieces, using a serrated knife.
Place cut pieces back onto baking sheet, on their sides, as shown. Bake in oven for 10 minutes.
Now turn the pieces over to bake the other side. Cook for only 5 minutes, then remove from the oven and let cool.
Pour the bag of semi sweet chocolate chips into a double boiler and let them melt. I used mini chips for this, but the regular size will work just the same. You could also use milk chocolate or dark chocolate if you prefer. Add 2-3 tablespoons of heavy whipping cream into the chocolate and stir until smooth.
Dip the end of each piece of biscotti into the chocolate.
Set biscotti on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper to set up and dry.
Enjoy your biscotti! This cookie treat makes a great holiday gift! Place a few biscotti in a bag tied at the top and then place the bag in a cute mug for a festive look and a gift anyone would love!
Thanks for joining me today! I hope you enjoyed #CranberryWeek and that you found a lot of delicious recipes that you can use!
It's Cranberry Week! See all the other delicious cranberry recipes being shared today (and follow #cranberryweek to see even more):
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Whisk flour and baking powder in bowl. Set aside.
Beat sugar and butter together in large mixing bowl. Add lemon zest and salt into bowl and blend. Add eggs in, one at a time.
Add flour mix and beat until blended.
Add dried cranberries and chopped pecans to the batter.
Stretch dough onto baking sheet and pat out dough until it becomes a log measuring 13" long and 3" wide.
Bake about 30-35 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool for about 20-30 minutes.
Make sure biscotti is cooled. Cut the biscotti into 1/2" wide pieces, using a serrated knife.
Place cut pieces back onto baking sheet, on their sides, as shown. Bake in oven for 10 minutes.
Now turn the pieces over to bake the other side. Cook for only 5 minutes, then remove from the oven and let cool.
Pour the bag of semi sweet chocolate chips into a double boiler and let them melt. I used mini chips for this, but the regular size will work just the same. You could also use milk chocolate or dark chocolate if you prefer. Add 2-3 tablespoons of heavy whipping cream into the chocolate and stir until smooth.
Dip the end of each piece of biscotti into the chocolate.
Set biscotti on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper to set up and dry.
Enjoy your biscotti! This cookie treat makes a great holiday gift! Place a few biscotti in a bag tied at the top and then place the bag in a cute mug for a festive look and a gift anyone would love!
