Chutney, relish, conserves, and jellies have all but disappeared from most of our everyday dinner tables, but they were a fixture in days gone by, especially at times of year when fresh produce was in short supply. I think these cheery little tastes ought to be brought back to the table more often, but at least they are still an expected and welcomed part of special holiday meals. And why not? Their piquant flavors play off the heartiness of meat, each enhancing the other, and they usually look like jewelry-in-a-dish. In fact, the word “piquant” itself is reason enough to make them — a word whose sound perfectly describes the experience of a mouthful of chutney, with that back-of-the-jaws tangy thrill. Peek-aun(t), peek-aun(t), peek-aun(t). Sorry, I get carried away.
Vinegar and sugar boiling down into syrup — a heady aroma, to be sure!
Anyway, a whirlwind three weeks has begun at our house, and I have been working hard these last couple of days to get a head-start on the fodder that will fuel all the activities. Yesterday it was beef stew, homemade bread, a dip for veggies, and chicken + stock. Today it is an apple cake with caramel frosting, Aunt Jolene’s Chicken Casserole (cousin to Poppyseed Chicken), Sloppy Joes, the veggie tray to go with the dip, and Cranberry Apple-Pear Chutney.
That’s what I’m sharing today. It started life as a Gourmet magazine recipe that my sister passed on to me several years ago. It was meant to be served with pork tenderloin and creamed corn, and that is a worthy purpose for it. Oh, and it was Apple-Raisin Chutney back then, but I immediately changed it to Apple-Date Chutney, since we bear with a couple of raisin-haters in this household. It didn’t suffer at all for the substitution, because it is just that kind of recipe.
Peel, core, and cut up the fruit
Then earlier this year my mom requested cranberry sauce of some kind to go with the crepes I was making for their big anniversary party. I wanted to do it for her. Problem was that I only had one bag of cranberries in the freezer, and they just aren’t available to buy at that time of year. It occurred to me that I could make the apple chutney and put cranberries in it instead of dates, which would give us the pretty color and the flavor but stretch my scant supply of berries.
Add the apples/pears to the vinegar/sugar mixture — the fruit gets this interesting puffy quality as it cooks.
Wow! Out of necessity comes invention and all that – I liked this version even more! I love it so much that it is usurping the usual slightly-tipsy cranberry sauce I make for Tday, although I am trying yet another variation by using half apples and half pears.
Add the cranberries for the last 10 minutes of cooking.
It truly has it all: pantry ingredients except for the fruit, foolproof, gorgeous, delicious, keeps pretty much forever, and can be made far in advance. Make it and give thanks for one Thanksgiving dish that is “done and done.”
This is a double-ish batch and it is a bad photo — much prettier in real life. From left to right: Tupperware bowl for far-in-future consumption, pretty glass bowl for Thanksgiving Dinner, little white custard cup for this Sunday’s Aunt Jolene’s Chicken Casserole, and tiny square Asian dish for the cook’s lunch. (If you were to spread a little cream cheese on a few crackers and spoon some warm chutney on them, I wouldn’t be the one to judge…)
Cranberry Apple (or Pear) Chutney
Makes about 4 cups
This is just what we want to eat with poultry of any kind. Use it at the holidays, certainly, but it is such a lovely touch beside chicken casseroles or on a sandwich, too. We served it at my parents’ fiftieth wedding anniversary party to accompany chicken and mushroom crepes, and it was a union almost as perfect as Mom’s and Dad’s.
2 c. apple cider vinegar
2 c. granulated sugar
2 lb. apples and/or pears, peeled, cored, and cut into ¾” pieces (about 7 c. prepared fruit)
¼ t. ground cloves
1 t. salt
up to 1 t. crushed red pepper flakes
1 ½ t. ground ginger
3 c. cranberries, (one 12 oz. bag)
1. Stir vinegar and sugar in a heavy 3-4 qt. saucepan over medium-high heat until sugar dissolves. Boil without stirring further until syrupy and reduced to 1 ½ c., about 15 minutes.
2. Prepare apples and/or pears while syrup reduces.
3. Reduce heat to medium; add apples/pears and all other ingredients except cranberries. Stir to coat with syrup. Cook for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Adjust heat down slightly if it threatens to boil over.
4. Stir in cranberries; cook for 10 more minutes.
5. Pour chutney into serving dishes. Cover and chill until serving. Mixture will thicken on standing.
This keeps a long time in the fridge. I really don’t know how long, but it is months rather than days or weeks.
The winner of the Le Creuset spatula giveaway was Heather Bunting. Hopefully she’ll get them in time to stir through the last of her Thanksgiving preparations. Heather writes about homemaking and childrearing topics over at Church Mouse. I’m sure you’ll enjoy and profit from reading her blog, so give her a visit!
Do you have a favorite relish-y thing to eat? It can come from Grandma, your own imagination, or the corner store. Share it here.
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