Family Recipe Friday - Cranberry Salad

In the past week we celebrated the New Year. And one of my favorite family recipes is my grandmother Dreher's cranberry salad.

Of course cranberries are the main ingredients. And grandmother's recipe called specifically for Ocean Spray brand cranberries. (The above photo is taken from their website.)

The recipe calls for strawberry Jello,  a can of pineapple tid bits drained, a Granny Smith apple, and walnuts.

Grandmother, and everyone else in my family who makes the salad, processes the cranberries, pineapple, peeled and cored apple and walnuts in a blender or food processor to a combination of very small pieces. The Jello is made according to package directions, and set in the refrigerator. After it begins to gel, the fruit and walnut combination is spooned into the  Jello and allowed to finish setting.

Me, on the other hand, am always doing things different. Especially if I can cut corners!

I cut the cranberries into halves (yes, it takes a while and you are left chasing cranberries if you don't take precautions, as they skitter away from you!). I cut the pineapple bits into half as well. The apple is chopped. And the walnuts are left halved. I also sometimes add canned and drained mandarin oranges, or coconut. I use 4 regular sized packages of cherry Jello, simply because I love the flavor.  I mix the Jello with 2 cups of boiling water and make sure the powder is completely dissolved. I then add two cups of ice so that it begins to set up faster. As it begins to gel, I add the fruit and walnuts.

The difference?

This is what Grandmother's cranberry salad looks like. It is quite delicious. And you certainly can use chewing as an alternative you like! Safe for the denture wearers at the meal.

And then there is mine....

This is crisp, chewy, and your dentures had better be in with good adhesive for this bad boy salad! The condensed Jello gives it a thicker consistency that holds everything together. It can be placed in a mold when preparing it, and you can safely unmold it without losing any contents, or fear of it falling apart.

Either way it is delicious. And both ways are delicious if you add whipped topping to each serving.

Of course, my family (siblings, etc.) think I'm crazy for this. It simply points out the lazy streak that runs right through me! But then, sometimes, cutting corners, or being lazy, is half the fun. Or in this case, half the flavor!

Bon apetit!

Family Recipe Friday - Variation on Mama's Cranberry Salad

Mama used to make a very interesting cranberry salad for the holidays. While it tasted okay, I won't even try to describe it to you! At least not what it looked like. A few years after I was on my own, I began to make a variation on Mama's cranberry salad. Whereas Mama put all of her ingredients into a blender, literally pulverizing the contents into a liquid mush, I took the time to chop and dice everything into a much more visually appealing dish.

One winter I came up with an even more interesting idea... how about if I added a little whipped topping and some sour cream? It turned out so good, that the next year I added cream cheese as well!

Today, my family slobbers all over themselves to get a bite of my cranberry salad. And it all began with Mama's version!

So, while I won't give you Mama's... here's my family's cranberry salad:

Cranberry Delight

Ingredients:

1-lb. fresh or frozen whole cranberries, chopped

1 orange, peel and chop, save the rind, remove pith and chop rind into tiny pieces

1- tangerine, peel and chop, save the rind, remove the pith and chop rind into tiny pieces

1 Rome apple, leave peel on and chop into small pieces

1 - cup chopped pecans

2-pkg Jello Strawberry Flavored Gelatin Dessert

1-small tub whipped topping, thawed

1 pkg. [8-oz.] cream cheese, softened

2-Tbsp. sour cream

Mix chopped cranberries, orange and peel, tangerine and peel, apple and pecans together in a large bowl.

Dissolve Jello in 2-cups hot water in a small bowl. Add 1-cup ice-cubes and stir until ice cubes have melted. Pour this liquid over fruit and nut mixture. Stir to make sure everything is covered by the jello.

Refrigerate. After 1-hour stir again. Chill one more hour and stir.

Return to refrigerator and chill until Jello is firm [about an hour].

Remove from refrigerator.

Use a large spoon to break up Jello. Now added thawed whipped topping, cream cheese and sour cream. Mix well.

This can be served immediately, or may be refrigerated up to 24-hours.

The kids absolutely love this!!!

We serve this dish on Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's. We have made it for Easter as well. If fresh cranberries or frozen cranberries can't be found, we have even used whole berry canned cranberry sauce as a substitute. Just use a little less water in your Jello to help it bind more firmly.

Yum! Yum!