Grandma Bea’s Cranberries

One of my favourite dishes for the holidays was my Grandma Bea’s cranberry dish. Not quite a cranberry sauce, but not actually a side dish either – it fits somewhere in between.  I have no idea where she got this recipe and a quick search on Google provides various cranberry salad recipes, but none of them are quite like the one my grandma made.

Like clock work you could depend on grandma to make specific dishes for holiday gatherings and they included: copper pennies, pea salad, and cranberries. I would always load up my plate with the ruby red cranberries pushing the turkey into second place.  When the meal was over and all of the leftovers were piled into the fridge, I always made sure I knew where they were hidden so I could be first to tuck in when the fullness had subsided – usually around 8.00-9.00 at night.

Now that I’m in a place where I want to start my own holiday traditions, I want to make sure my grandma’s memory lives on through this dish.  This year her cranberries will take pride of place alongside the goose I’m roasting and I know it will help make my Christmas special.

Ingredients:

300g bag of cranberries, chopped fine

150g bag of pecan halves, chopped

227g can of crushed pineapple, well drained

1 packet of lemon jelly/o*

1 packet of orange jelly/o*

200g sugar

400g cream cheese at room temp

1. Chop the cranberries with a sharp knife or blast in a food processor taking care not to blend into a puree. The cranberries need to be somewhat chunky but not so chunky as to have whole or half pieces. Once chopped place in a bowl, cover with sugar and let them macerate for 30 minutes.
   
2. Drain the crushed pineapple until almost dry and add to the cranberry mixture. Make sure there is very pineapple juice left because it will prevent the jelly/o from setting.
3. Chop the pecans into small pieces or blitz in a food processor taking care not to blend until the pecans are crumbs – you want to be able to have some bite. Set aside.
   
4. Prepare both packets of jelly/o as per the package instructions using only half of the water and combine with the cranberry and pineapple mixture. Mix in the pecans and pour half of the mixture into a square dish and refrigerate until set. Set aside the remaining mixture in a warmish area to prevent it from setting up.
   
   
   
   
5. Place the cream cheese into a bowl and mix well until it is a spreadable consistency. You could add some icing/powdered sugar to sweeten the cream cheese if you prefer.
6. Remove the set cranberry jelly/o from the fridge and spread the cream cheese evenly on top.
7. Pour the remaining cranberry jelly/ mixture over the cream cheese and refrigerate until set.

You should have a glistening white layer of cream cheese sandwiched between two layers of deep scarlet jelly/o. Make the dish the day before serving to allow the flavours really amalgamate – make sure to make enough for leftovers!