cranberries: take me beyond sauce

[kangamitroo]

fresh cranberry season i love their flavor.
any ideas for incorporating them into vegetable/grain/legume dishes?
i only think of baked goods ideas.

i'm also going to search through for a butter-free yet crunchy fruit crisp topping--cran-apple and cran-pear are such delicious combinations.

thanks!

[425lisamarie]

they are fabulous in a warm lentil salad with a nice apple cider vinaigrette. I like the french lentils because they stand up better to cooking/chilling/reheating. Just toss cooked lentils with a nice dressing, cranberries, (I like) pumpkin seeds or other nuts, and brown rice or quinoa or something, serve over tender greens.

I make basic lentils by just cooking them in water with a few peppercorns, bay leaf and a few cloves of garlic, then drain and store in fridge/freezer.

I also love cranberry nut coffee cake, cranberry orange muffins, just take your favorite muffin recipe, use orange juice for liquid, and zest of an orange and a cup of cranberries chopped up.

[Lynn08]

I mix cranberries with quinoa and sliced almonds. To make it a heartier main dish (as opposed to a side), I sautee cubed yams and apples together and add it in. I have even used this mix (plus a few other things that I don't remember right now - I was roughly following a recipe) to make stuffed acorn squash.

[mumkimum]

Not really what you're looking for, but I love upside down cranberry cakes.

I've seen cranberries used in risottos too - usually breakfast ones that are somewhat sweet (like oatmeal) but I bet you could swing it somewhat savory, and maybe add squash or something too.

[buckeye_bebe]

I like cranberries in a grain pilaf, with toasted pumpkin seeds. Add a brown sauce or gravy to gild the lily.

[kangamitroo]

Originally Posted by mumkimum

Not really what you're looking for, but I love upside down cranberry cakes.

oh, yum! while i was thinking savory recipes, that sounds very tempting. may i ask your recipe?

thank you everyone for your good ideas.

[mumkimum]

I've used what is basically this recipe for upside down cranberry cake (sorry, couldn't find it online with US measurements so you'd have to convert this, but it's in Nigella Lawson's How to be a Domestic Goddess cookbook too so you could find it with 'normal' US measurements that way). It's especially nice cause it's not overly sweet and retains a lot of tartness. It's been incredible everytime I've made it too.