Thanksgiving Week--Cranberry Chutney

This is a favorite week for me, especially if I am not traveling so I am not concerned about weather.  We desperately need rain here, not much since April 2016 and we are down more than 12 inches.  We might get some good rain mid-week and that will be wonderful.

My favorite recipe, one I HAVE to make any time there is turkey or ham on the menu is Cranberry Chutney.  I grew up with Ocean Spray jellied cranberry sauce from the can, the kind that has those can lines on the sides when you open both ends of the can and push the roll of sauce onto a plate. About 40 years ago I followed a Cooking Light Turkey dinner complete menu, making all the dishes shown, and THIS is the one recipe that has stuck around:

CRANBERRY CHUTNEY       

Barbara Black       

1 bag fresh cranberries, 12-16 oz                    1 cup water

1 cup sugar, can be less                                   1 cup onion, chopped

1/2 cup brown sugar, can be less                     1 cup apple, chopped

1/2 cup raisins                                                  1/2 cup celery, chopped

2 t cinnamon                                                    1/2 -1 cup chopped pecans

1 1/2 t ginger

1/2 t cloves

1/4 t allspice

Simmer cranberries, sugars, raisins, spices, and 1 cup water uncovered in 2 quart saucepan over medium heat, stirring frequently, until juice is released from berries, about 15 minutes.  Reduce heat; stir in remaining ingredients.  Simmer uncovered until thick, about 15 minutes.  Refrigerate covered or freeze.  Batch can be doubled--use large saucepan.    NOTE:  I always double this--DO NOT DOUBLE THE SUGARS. Keep extra in the freezer.  This will last from Thanksgiving until Christmas.  I buy fresh cranberries in early November and freeze them for later use. 

Over the years, I've made a few changes, the best being to reduce the amount of sugar.  I doubled the recipe and FORGOT to double the sugar, and it was BETTER!  About 5 years ago I added chopped pecans and that was a huge hit at my house, kind of makes it more "Southern".  The kitchen smells amazing while this is cooking, puts you in the mood for holiday food.  People who don't like cranberry sauce like this, and I am always asked for the recipe--now I can direct folks here.  You can save it to your Pinterest Boards too--see below.

Saturday I taught a fun class--they wanted the recipe when my daughter-in-law sent me a message asking for it during class.  Here are the "Southern Super Star" quilts under construction:

Donna D--half the middle and one quarter star points

Holly R--one quarter middle, one quarter star points

Dahlia K--one quarter middle, one quarter star points, almost

All three students worked hard all day and can now finish their tops at home.  We spent the last half hour of class time considering various border options, square or rectangle, you decide.  This is a class I enjoy teaching a lot and this quilt is my "go-to giveaway" quilt because I can make the top in a weekend, the cost of edge-to-edge longarm quilting isn't prohibitive and I can shop in my closet for the 8 fabrics needed:

Outside Tip:  1/4 yard

Second:          1/3 yard

Third:            1/2 yard

Fourth:          5/8 yard

Fifth:             1/2 yard

Sixth:            1/3 yard

Center:          1/4 yard

Background:   1 3/4 yard--buy 2 yards for border options

Borders are extra--unless I know for sure what I want for the borders, I wait until the star is done then shop in my closet.  Here are some previous quilts I have given away:

The pattern is from Calico Carriage Quilt Designs.  It is also available as a single pattern but the book provides several sizes and great directions and is moderately priced, I recommend the book.

Happy to say I am all caught up with Stella's Splendid Sampler, 81 blocks done:

The top 5 rows are sewn together, rows 6-8 are sewn together and row 9 is just getting started.  Blocks are released each Sunday and Thursday--this began February 14, 2016 and will conclude in February 2017 when 100 blocks have been released.  The patterns are free for now and a book is underway, for Spring 2017 release.  This project is organized by Pat Sloan and Jane Davidson--they used over 80 additional designers to provide many different techniques.  There are 23,697 followers on Facebook currently and more than that who follow on the internet here.

What will I do when this is done?  Finish a few more long-term UFOs that have taken a backseat for too long.

Have a Happy Thanksgiving, surrounded with those you love.  My husband and I will go to a restaurant but Friday I'm getting a rotisserie chicken so that cranberry chutney can be enjoyed.

Let's quilt!

Barbara