A Little Dab Won't Do Ya

Recently two of my sisters, and their four kids, came to visit UD and ME.  This has become a yearly tradition, for which I am very grateful to my sisters.  I used to be able to see a lot more of them, and their precious four, but then came the move to The Rocky Coast.  So it is something we really look forward to, and always a fun event.  Each year we have had a treasure hunt, and here are a few pictures. 

J and G are searching for some clues.

As are L and T.

Eventually they all made it safely back with their treasures in hand.

In the meantime, I was given some treasures also.  Sister N brought along some delicious wines that we were able to enjoy that evening, once everything settled down.  And Sister E brought along some very fresh cranberries that she and her friend P had gathered.  Well, the wine I knew what to do with, but the cranberries proved to be more of a challenge.  But what am I, a mouse or a man?  Well neither, but come on challenge.  So after much recipe searching, I came upon this one.  It is a savory cranberry sauce, whose original intent was to be served with steak.  But that didn't jive with me.  I thought chicken or pork.  So we tried it with both.  But more on that later.

You will need:
2 cups of cranberries, fresh or defrosted
1 cup diced white onion (1 large)
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1 cup red wine vinegar
2 cups dark ale or lager beer
1 cup Worcestershire sauce
1/3 cup soy sauce

ALSO:
1/2 to 1 cup granulated sugar - This was not called for in the recipe, but I added it in the end, because I found the sauce much too tart for my liking.  After reading many recipes, I noticed some had more sugar than others.  So add this sugar 1/4 cup at a time, until it tastes delicious to you.  Again, this would be added at the very end.

Rinse the cranberries.  Don't they look beautiful?

Put all the ingredients in a good sized pot, minus the granulated sugar.

Bring everything to a simmer over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally.

Continue stirring until the sauce has thickened and reduced slightly, about 1 hour.

Next, put it in a blender, in batches, until smooth.  You could also use a food processor, or an immersion blender.  The immersion blender seemed like the easiest way for me to go.  Use what you are most comfortable with.

Place a fine mesh strainer in another pot, and press the mixture through.

There will be very little waste.

Now you have a rich, dark red cranberry sauce, ready for the tasting.  This is where I slowly added in some granulated sugar.  I believe I used at least 3/4 of a cup, if not a whole cup.  I let it simmer for 10 more minutes or so, until the sugar was totally absorbed.

UD had the sauce with chicken.  He loved it, and eventually doused his egg noodles with it also.  We had a salad with dinner, but luckily he stuck with regular salad dressing for that.

I had the sauce with a pork chop.  I was a little less sure of how I would like it, so I just put a dab of it on the side of the plate.  That little dab soon proved to be a joke.  I brought a bowl and small ladle to the table, and we went to town!

A bientot!  See you soon.