Cranberry Relish Recipe

Cranberry relish can be used many way to liven up anything from a holiday dinner to a weekend breakfast. Here’s how to make it and use it.

What Is Cranberry Relish?

Cranberry relish is a condiment. You can use it similarly to jam or jelly. It is a raw dish, unlike it’s counterpart, cranberry sauce, though it can be used in much the same way.

How Do You Use Cranberry Relish?

Fresh cranberry relish is actually very versatile stuff. You can serve it with meats like chicken or pork or even over salmon. You could even put it on a hot dog!

Have it on your morning toast or on waffles or pancakes. Or if you’re having a get together, serve it on top of some cream cheese and serve with whole grain crackers.

Recipe Variations

There are many different ways you can make a cranberry relish. Here are a few of them along with the measurements you would need.

Cranberry Orange Relish

If you really want to up the orange flavor in this relish, you can do so by doubling the chopped oranges, adding in the zest from that orange (Usually approximately 1 tbsp.) and you could even add in some orange extract (about ½ to 1 tsp., depending on how strong you want to flavor. Be cautious and taste as you go)

Cranberry Pecan Relish

Some folks like to blend nuts into their relish for a little extra crunch and nutty goodness. The most often used nuts are pecans or walnuts. Blend in about ½ a cup of nuts if you want to add them.

Other Additions:

• Pineapple (1 cup to replace the oranges)
• Ginger (½ to 1 tsp. fresh grated ginger, or ¼ to ½ tsp. ground ginger.
• Ground Cinnamon (½ to 1 tsp.)

What You’ll Need

2 cups fresh cranberries – I usually purchase 2 packages of cranberries because when I wash and separate them, I always end up with some that need to be thrown out.

1 cup chopped tart apples – You can use any apples you wish, but tart apples will give this relish a nice contrast that is delicious here. Granny smith apples are always a good option.

1 cup chopped oranges – This is approximately half of a large orange. Chop them up before measuring. They don’t have to be chopped small, just a coarse chop to make them fit better in the measuring cup.

½ cup chopped red onions – Onions are a delicious part of many relishes. If you aren’t sure about the onions, start with ¼ cup and add more to taste as you like. But they really do add a nice contrast in flavor which balances wonderfully with the sweetness in this dish.

¼ cup honey – If you want to be cautious with the sweetness level in this recipe, start with 1 tbsp. of honey. You can always add more, but you can’t take any out. This recipe is sweet.

¼ cup maple syrup – This is your base sweetener for this recipe. So use the full ¼ cup to start. If you want to adjust sweetness, do so with the honey. And make sure you are using real maple syrup. Imitation maple syrup won’t be the same here and is far less healthy overall.

How To Serve Cranberry Relish

You would serve this relish in the same way that you would serve any other relish. Simply put it in a serving dish and set a spoon to the side for people to serve themselves with.

How To Make Cranberry Relish

Place all the ingredients in a food processor and pulse until everything is uniformly processed. Do not run the processor until you have mush. Blend carefully.

If this tastes too sweet to you, add a small amount of lemon juice and about a ¼ tsp. of salt. Not sweet enough? Add a bit more honey.

Alternative Method

If you want a relish that is on the dryer side, you can blend each of the fruits separately, draining off some of the juice that will come as a result before mixing them all together.

Then simply add in the sweeteners and mix with a spoon.

Recipe Notes

It is critical that no matter how you prepare this (as the recipe states or with the alternative method above), that you pulse the ingredients in the food processor. Don’t just turn it on and let it go, or you’ll end up with something closer to a smoothie. Pulsing to just the right consistency is the way to go here. You basically just want a fine chop. If you’ve ever had pickle relish, that’s the consistency you’re going for here.

Need Supplies?

More Cranberry Recipes

• Cranberry Butter
• Cranberry Butternut Bake
• Cranberry Upside Dow Cake
• Cranberry Pie

Cranberry Relish Recipe