Few fruits are as iconic of the winter holidays as the brightly colored, small, firm, ridiculously tart, cranberry. Strung along a thread and paired with popcorn, they've decorated trees for generations. They've served as eyes for snowmen, instant home décor inside otherwise empty vases and accents for wreaths and evergreen floral arrangements. We use them to make relish and sauce, a holiday meal staple in many homes. Its juice is the core of many a holiday punch recipe and mixed with ginger ale, children are amused to sip it like a grown-up cocktail. Even a few berries to garnish a cake or dropped into a cocktail or glass of champagne provides an instant holiday "pop". They are the little balls of color amongst the drab winter backdrop and when you see them, you instantly think of the holidays.
Not only do these little pops of bright-red carry a welcome visual appeal amongst the bare winter scenery, beneath that colorful skin, they carry a powerful punch of vitamins and antioxidants. Whilst almost unbearably tart when eaten alone, when cooked, mashed or even dried, and then sweetened, they are not only nutritionally beneficial but quite delicious!
You could almost say that the cranberry's presence is an American tradition. One of only three fruits native to North America, they are most commonly grown in the north-east of North America; (but they can also be found in the midwestern state of Wisconsin, the Pacific Northwest, as well as Chile – heeeeyyy!) Native Americans used these tiny fruits for their medicinal value as well as for dye. Colonists ate them for their high vitamin C content as it helped prevent Scurvy. Their high antioxidant content combats free radicals. And they've long been used for urinary tract health as they protect against certain bacteria, namely E.coli.
Although their nutritional benefits have long been known, it wasn't until the 1800s that cranberries were first farmed on a large-scale. Perhaps that's because the berries, which grow on long-running, low-lying vines, are cumbersome to harvest. That is, until the farming technique of "flooding" was discovered. Cranberries, which grow naturally in sandy bogs and marshes, are naturally buoyant. By flooding the plant area, the berries float to the top of the water and are much easier to harvest. Ocean Spray is one such company who saw the value in this and became the trade-mark cranberry company in North America. You can learn more about them here: http://www.oceanspray.com/Who-We-Are/Heritage/Cranberry-History.aspx
While I have some bangin' recipes for cranberry relish and sauce, this is a libation post. So below I have two cranberry cocktail recipes for your next holiday gathering. Both use unsweetened cranberry juice to cut down on sugar and preserve nutritional value. It can be hard to find but if you don't find it in your local grocery store, check an organic market. Or, just use the sweet stuff and know that you may need to compensate for it somewhere else. The first recipe is a martini, my favorite in the world of cocktails. The second is a mule, a very trendy option with a spicy kick.
Cranberry-Amaretto Martini
- 2 cups unsweetened cranberry juice
- 1 cup vodka
- 1/3 cup amaretto
- 3 TBS triple sec
- 1 fresh clementine (wedges used as garnish)
Combine juice and alcohols in a shaker with ice. Strain into a glass and garnish with an orange slice. Makes 4 martinis.
Spicy Cranberry Mule
- 2 oz unsweetened cranberry juice
- 3 oz ginger beer
- 1 1/2 oz spiced rum
- 1 oz simple syrup (you could also follow my recipe for spiced simple syrup found here:
https://lifelibertyandlibations.com/2017/10/08/the-pear-martini/
Serve over ice and garnish with sugared cranberries. Makes one mule.
Happy Holiday season … like the cranberry … may your days be merry and bright and might your tartness be sweetened so that your infectious spirit can be drank by those around you.
