Seasonal Cranberries revamped for the Holidays

With the holidays upon us, cranberries have hit the shelves in your produce section! They're a great seasonal product generally harvest in September through October and the peak market period running through December. And you can create so many tasty treats with these tarts berries! Put the traditional sauce aside because cranberries are perfect for pies, muffins, cobblers and so much more. Just try pairing them with fruits such as apples or oranges. And the best part about them...they're extremely healthy for you! An entire cup of whole, raw cranberries are about 50 calories and pack an impressive 4.0 grams of fiber which is about 12% of your recommended daily value (on a scale of 35 grams per day). Furthermore, these seasonal berries are a great source of vitamins A and C and contain antioxidantes that help protect you from cancer while reducing the risk of heart disease/stokes.

Now Cranberries are traditionally known as a great complement to meat (such as with Turkey on Thanksgiving day), but I wanted to find a more creative way to use this fruit. I found this great recipe for a dressing to put on salad rather than the typical sauce we all know of. Recipes4Living.com posted this recipe for salad and dressing. Notice how they paired a cranberry dressing with a salad containing walnuts and blue cheese. These ingredients going extremely well together to make a nice pairing in a salad. I tried it and loved it so I hope it's the same for you!

Ingredients

• 5 C. mixed greens, herbs and lettuce
• 1/4 lb. blue cheese, crumbled
• 1 red onion, very thinly sliced
• 1/3 C. coarsely chopped walnuts

Dressing:

• 1 C. fresh cranberries
• 1 seedless navel orange, peeled and sectioned
• 2/3 C. granulated sugar
• 1/2 C. wine vinegar
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp. ground mustard
• 1 C. olive or vegetable oil

Directions:

In a blender, combine the cranberries, orange sections, sugar, vinegar, salt, and ground mustard. Process till combined. Then remove the blender cover and gradually add oil in a steady stream. Set aside.

Rip all of the greens into bite size pieces. You can use an assortment of spring or baby greens along with romaine lettuce, spinach and herbs such as sprigs of dill, basil, and cilantro. To assemble place a handful of the salad mix on a plate or in a bowl, and top with some of the cheese and the walnuts. Pass the dressing to guests to drizzle over the salad.