Cranberries: This Week's Market Report Good Buy
Fresh cranberries are one of those curious ingredients that seem to pop up once a year, never to return to our menus until the leaves start falling off the trees again. And it’s such a shame! Fresh cranberries are not only simple to work with, but they are packed with incredible flavor and tons of health benefits! Fresh cranberries are inedible when they are raw, but once heat is applied, they literally pop with sweet, tart, floral goodness that compliments rich, fatty flavors like a dream. That’s why they are served during Thanksgiving dinner; the heaviest meal of the year!
Try cooking fresh cranberries down with a bit of water and lime juice until they pop to make a crimson base for winter salsa. A bit of raw onion, cilantro, jalapeño, and salt, and all you’ll need is a handful of tortilla chips! Fresh cranberries are also exquisite thrown directly into baked goods like muffins, pies, pancakes, and galettes. They become jammy and oozing with juice after about 20 minutes in the oven. One of my favorite brunch items are fresh cranberry and ginger scones. I love the little pockets of berries that explode in the oven and pool in the pastry. Lastly, fresh cranberries are lovely as garnish in cocktails and in the bottom of champagne flutes.
About the Chef
Stephanie Goldfarb is a Chicago-based chef and national food television personality specializing in seasonal, globally-inspired cuisine. Recognized as the winner of Food Network’s America’s Best Cook competition, and a celebrity chef on Kitchen Inferno and NBC’s Food Fighters, Goldfarb delivers unique and relatable culinary experiences to discriminating and casual diners alike. As the owner of the successful Seven Species Supper Club & Catering, she enjoys the challenge of building brand new menus each month that inspire both repeat clients and newcomers, and seeks opportunities to utilize new ingredients, techniques, and approaches in accessible ways.