Thanksgiving is a popular festival celebrated all over the world and is observed on the fourth Thursday of November. Originally a typical American holiday Thanksgiving evokes family reunions, football, story-telling and delicious feasts complete with the conventional roasted, stuffed turkey and mouth-watering side dishes. The origin of the Thanksgiving holiday goes back to the year 1621, when the American colonists and Wampanoag Indians celebrated an autumn harvest festival, which was one of the first thanksgiving festivals in the American sub-continent. For more than two centuries, Thanksgiving was celebrated in various colonies all over the United States until President Abraham Lincoln proclaimed that Thanksgiving Day was to be held each November in 1863, in the midst of the Civil War. Thanksgiving is all about delicious food and even better sides! Here is a simple Cranberry Salsa recipe that you can whip up in your kitchen in a couple of minutes, and serve it with that delicious turkey at the Thanksgiving feast.
Cranberry Salsa Recipe
This recipe serves 12, and goes perfectly well with chips, crackers and roasted turkey.
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 15 minutes
Ingredients
This year, prepare delicious cranberry salsa for Thanksgiving that will flabbergast your loved ones. Read on for the Cranberry Salsa Recipe.
Cranberry Salsa Recipe
- 1 � cups of fresh cranberries
- 2 cloves of garlic
- 1 cup of roughly chopped onions/shallots (either red or white)
- 1 jalapeno pepper (optional - seeded/minced)
- 8 teaspoons of lime juice
- 1 pinch of salt
- 1 cup cilantro
- 1 � tablespoons of vegetable oil (Olive oil is also acceptable)
Method
- Heat the vegetable oil in a large saucepan and place it over a medium-heat flame. Add the shallots, garlic and jalapeno, and cook until they are soft. (3-4 minutes preferably)
- In a separate saucepan, add the lemon juice and the cranberries and bring to a low simmer. Cook until the cranberries have softened and have begun to reduce. (6-7 minutes over medium-heat flame)
- Remove the cranberries and the shallots mixture from both the saucepans and blend it together in a food processor a few times. You should ideally be looking for a coarse consistency and not a smooth paste.
- After a few pulses in the blender, add the salt, and the cilantro for a dash of freshness!
- Voila! Your Cranberry salsa is ready. Top it off with a fresh sprig of cilantro or parsley and you are ready to serve this mouth-watering salsa with the hors d'oeuvres and the Thanksgiving food.
Note
- � If you prefer your Cranberry Salsa sweet, you could fry a stick of cinnamon/cinnamon powder with the shallots and garlic. Otherwise, � teaspoon of sugar can also be added while blending the ingredients in the food processor. The choice is entirely up to you!
- � Frozen cranberries can also be used, if fresh cranberries are not available.
Cranberries are in season only for a short span of time, and the best part is, they are usually 'in' season, just in time for Thanksgiving! With this quick and easy salsa recipe made with fresh/canned cranberries, the flavors of the traditional turkey, pies and vegetables will be doubly enriched, and your guests are going to beg you for the recipe! Happy Thanksgiving!