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Cranberries are a cherished part of American holiday traditions. Many Americans can't imagine the Thanksgiving holiday without a bowl of cranberry relish on the table or a dab of cranberry sauce on their plate.
But cranberries deserve a star turn on the dessert menu, too. Try adding cranberries to one of these classic dishes for a holiday treat that could become one of your favorites.
Cranberry-Apple Crisp
A fruit crisp is a simple, homespun dish that's a snap to make. Give this family favorite a holiday twist by adding whole or chopped fresh cranberries.
Ingredients for streusel topping:
1 1/2 cups quick-cooking oats
1/4 cup chopped walnuts
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup butter, melted
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
To make the fruit crisp: Toss together 2 cups fresh cranberries, 3 cups apples (peeled and either sliced or chopped into pieces), 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour, 1 cup sugar, and a pinch of salt. Place the mixture in a 9- or 10-inch buttered baking dish. Cover the fruit with the streusel and bake in a 350-degree oven for 40–50 minutes. You'll know the dish is ready when the fruit filling is soft but not mushy and the topping is crisp. Serve your cranberry-apple crisp warm or cooled, and either on its own or accompanied by whipped topping or vanilla ice cream.
This dish is easy enough and good enough that you'll want to make it more than once. Experiment with the amount of sugar you use to bring out the best in the cranberries. Try pairing the cranberries with different types of apples, too. Tart baking apples like Granny Smiths and Jonathans will push the dish in a pucker-inducing direction, while sweet varieties like Golden Delicious and Honeycrisps will provide a mellow contrast.
Cranberry Upside-Down Cake
Few homemade desserts look better than an upside-down cake. For the holidays, try replacing the traditional pineapple-and-maraschino-cherry topping with a layer of ruby-red cranberries sweetened by butter and brown sugar.
Making an upside-down cake is much easier than it looks. You'll begin with the topping. Melt 4 tablespoons unsalted butter and 3/4 cup brown sugar together in a saucepan. Heat the mixture, stirring constantly, until it just starts to bubble. Remove the mixture from the burner, let it cool slightly, and stir in 12 ounces of fresh cranberries. Spread this mixture evenly across the bottom of a well-greased cake or springform pan. Pour a simple yellow or white cake batter over the fruit, pop the whole thing into the oven, and bake as directed.
The one tricky part in making an upside-down cake is getting the finished dessert out of the pan without leaving any of the topping behind. You'll increase your chances of success by greasing the sides and bottom of your pan generously before adding the fruit or batter. It also helps to run a knife around the outside of the baked cake to separate it from the pan before inverting everything onto a platter. Finally, let the pan sit on the inverted cake for a moment before removing, so that gravity has a chance to help keep the topping where it belongs.
If, despite all your best efforts, some topping remains stuck to the pan, don't worry. Just use a spatula or a knife to remove the stuck bits and put them back in place on the cake. An added advantage of using cranberries instead of pineapple slices is that the small round berries lend themselves more easily to this type of repair work. You're the only person who will ever know the cake didn't come out of the pan looking perfect.
Fresh Cranberry Topping
Imagine a slice of creamy, classic cheesecake paired with a delicious cranberry topping, and not the kind that comes out of a can, but rather, a sauce you've made yourself from fresh or frozen cranberries, sugar, and possibly a splash of orange juice, cider, or your favorite liqueurs.
This topping can be made ahead of time. Combine 3/4 cup water, 1 1/4 cups granulated sugar, and 1/2 cup honey in a saucepan and bring the mixture just to boiling point. Reduce the heat and stir in a 12-ounce bag of fresh cranberries. Reduce the mixture to a simmer and let it cook until the cranberries have split their skins. Remove the sauce from the heat and allow it to cool.
Store the cranberry topping in a covered container in the refrigerator.
To serve, let the topping come up to room temperature and spoon or drizzle it over slices of homemade or store-bought cheesecake. Return any leftover sauce to the refrigerator to use the next morning on waffles or pancakes, or the next night with vanilla ice cream.
