Rustic Cranberry Relish

Recipe 17 Rustic Cranberry Relish pg. 238

Rustic Cranberry relish

Thanksgiving is almost here! I really love this holiday.  No gifts to shop for, just family and friend getting together to eat.  I am devoting this week to some dishes that would compliment your Thanksgiving gathering.  Cranberry sauce is something I always felt was one of my signature dishes.  The problem was mine is loaded with sugar and alcohol!  Seriously, I put a bottle of cheap red wine in it, and about a half a box of sugar.  It is delicious but not very healthy. 

The Rustic Cranberry Relish I made from Crazy Sexy Kitchen was amazing, and so much healthier than my recipe!  The jalapeno is the key and kicker to this recipe.  It gives it a zest that is quite good.  I did have to add a bit more agave to my relish.  The recipe calls for 2 tablespoons of agave, but I used about double the amount.  Now to my defense I am coming from a place of pure sugar addiction as you know!  Think about it, I used half a box of sugar in my old cranberry recipe. This recipe in comparison to my old recipe is so much better for you and frankly it tastes better too!  Here is what you will need to add some spice to your cranberries:

When I combined the ingredients I was a little sceptical to whether their would be a enough liquid to cook it.  My recipe had massive amounts of wine and orange juice to simmer the cranberries for at least a hour.  This recipe had very little liquid, yet it cooked beautifully and fast.  It was done in 15 minutes.  I smashed any cranberries that may not have burst.  The thing about this relish is you can serve it right away, or you can make it the day before.  The longer you let it sit the spicier it gets.  The jalapeno really come to life the more it marinates.

Now totally unrelated to cranberries. Today is my wedding anniversary.  My husband and I celebrated this weekend in Chicago.  We had the best time.  The weather was awesome.  Cold by California standards, but I guess we missed a massive rain storm in CA, and a very depressing UCLA vs USC game.  We lounged in bed, shopped, walked the city, saw movies, and dined on amazing food.

An anniversary gift from our hotel!

Here is the really great thing about being married for 18 years, we still have the most fun together.  I am really in love, and feel very blessed to have such a great husband. He spoils me, and is such a wonderful dad to our kids.

November 19, 1994

18 years later!

Happy Anniversary babe!