What's in Cranbery Sauce?

What's in Cranberry Sauce?

Sugar, sugar, and more sugar.

If you buy the traditional Ocean Spray Jellied Cranberry Sauce you will be eating high fructose corn syrup AND corn syrup. That ends up being 76% sugar as two out of the four ingredients are sugar.

Here's some interesting information about sugar...

(I won't go into detail about the dense information I recently absorbed about the difference between sucrose, fructose, high fructose corn syrup, etc.)

*Sugar can suppress the immune system. 

*Sugar contributes to a weakened defense against bacterial infection.

*Sugar interferes with absorption of calcium.

 

With winter on its way...sugar is the last thing your immune system needs! BUT I love my cranberry sauce! So what's a girl to do? Here are a couple options...

 

Homemade Cranberry sauce can be super simple to make and although it still contains sugar, you can control the amount as well as omit all the artificial ingredients most canned products contain.

Here is my Mum & Dad's super simple Cranberry Sauce Recipe

1 bag of fresh cranberries

1 cup water

1 cup sugar (although I suggest using less or experimenting with maple sugar)

lemon peel (optional)

pinch of nutmeg or cinnamon (optional)

Melt the sugar in the water and then add cranberries, lemon peel and spices. Bring to a boil and immediately lower the heat to simmer. Cranberries will pop as they cook. Once they all pop - pour into a container to cool and then refrigerate it. 

My Mum also loves to make a Cranberry Compote, but I'll save that for another post.

 

You can also try Wildtree's Apple Cranberry Jam or Cranberry Jalapeno Jelly instead!

It still has sugar - but it's evaporated cane juice instead of hfcs. I use the Jam for cooking chicken, pork, mixing in with rice or just as a plan old accompaniment to a traditional turkey dinner.  Order your Cranberry Jams & Jellies while you can at www.jenwarr.mywildtree.com. They are available until December 31st and then not again until next fall.

Apple Cranberry Wild Rice

Apple Cranberry Wild Rice
The perfect side dish for a fall dinner.

 

Ingredients
1/4 cup butter
1/2 cup leeks, white portion chopped
1/2 cup pecans, coarsely chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 cup wild rice, rinsed and drained
3 cups chicken broth
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 cup basmati rice
1/2 cup Wildtree Apple Cranberry Jam

1/4 cup dried cranberries

Directions
 Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat.
Add the leeks and pecans, sauté until the leeks are soft.
Add the garlic and sauté 1-2 minutes, making sure it does not brown.
Add the wild rice, chicken broth and salt. Cover and cook 60 minutes.
When there are twenty minutes left in the cook time add the basmati rice. When the rice is done cooking and tender (but not mushy), let stand 5 minutes longer covered. Drain any excess liquid. Add Wildtree's Apple Cranberry Jam and dried cranberries to garnish and serve.

 

To order Wildtree's Apple Cranberry Jam or any other Wildtree groceries, please go to www.jenwarr.mywildtree.com.

Horseradish Mashed Potatoes

Horseradish Mashed Potatoes
I must credit Stonewall Kitchen for this recipe - they always have amazing yumminess!! But I managed to make it even better by using Wildtree ingredients.

Ingredients
4 large Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
½ cup heavy cream, slightly warmed
6 Tablespoons butter
6 oz. goat cheese
¼ cup Wildtree's Horseradish Mustard
2 teaspoons prepared horseradish (optional)
¼ cup finely chopped scallions (green onions)
Stonewall Kitchen Maine Sea Salt and pepper, to taste

Directions
In a medium saucepan place potato chunks and approximately 1 TBSP of salt. Fill with water, covering potatoes and bring to a boil over high heat.  Reduce the heat to medium, cover and cook the potatoes until fork tender (approximately 20 minutes).

Drain potatoes and place potatoes back into the pan, off the heat. Mash the potatoes and add butter by tablespoon, stirring until melted.  Add goat cheese and cream. Continue blending until creamy and smooth.  Add remaining ingredients (horseradish, Wildtree's Horseradish Mustard, scallions and salt and pepper). Stir until blended.

Serve warm. Can be made one day ahead and gently heated over a double boiler on the stove. Garnish with additional scallions, if desired.

 

To order your Horseradish Mustard, or any other Wildtree groceries, please go to www.jenwarr.mywildtree.com.

Shake & Bake

Italian Herb Crusted Pork Chops

Do you enjoy the juicy, crunchy deliciousness of a breaded pork chop? Do you use Shake 'N Bake to make yours? Have you read the ingredients? Trans fats, sugar and MSG are a few of the things I am sure you don't want to feed your family on a pork chop. But you need quick & easy? No worries! Wildtree can help with the recipe below.

Shake 'n Bake Original Pork flavor contains the following ingredients: enriched wheat flour (wheat flour, niacin, iron, thiamin mononitrate Vitamin B1, riboflavin (vitamin B2), folic acid), salt, partially hydrogenated soybean and cottonseed oil, sugar, contains less than 2% of paprika, dextrose, dried onions, spice, caramel color, yeast, annatto (color), and natural flavor.

 

 

Try this recipe for a healthy and absolutely delicious version of Shake 'N Bake!

(The directions are for making this into a freezer meal, but you can skip that part and eat them tonight! Better yet, double your recipe and use half now and freeze the other half for another night!)

 

Italian Herb Crusted Pork Chops

8 pork chops, thin sliced (about 2 lbs)

1½ cup bread crumbs

2 Tbsp Hearty Spaghetti Seasoning

1/4 cup grapeseed oil

½ tsp salt

¼ tsp pepper

 

Instructions:  Combine all ingredients in freezer bag.  Seal and shake bag to combine ingredients and coat chops as much as possible.  Freeze. Thaw completely. Remove chops and place on a broiling pan. Gently press onto the pork chops any leftover crumb mixture. Broil on high temperature for 2 minutes on one side.  Lower oven temp to 350, turn chops over and bake for 15-20 minutes or until meat is cooked thoroughly (cooking time will vary slightly depending upon the thickness of your chops). This is a definite “kid-friendly” meal!!  You can even slice these in strips (like chicken fingers) to eat with your fingers.

 

Suggested Side Dish: Serve with sauteed green beans and ‘Garlicky’ roast potatoes by using Wildtree’s Garlic Galore and Garlic Grapeseed Oil.

To order your Wildtree groceries please go to www.jenwarr.mywildtree.com.

Gluten Free, Vegan Brownies

My Recipe for Gluten, Dairy & Egg Free Brownies

Ingredients

1 package Wildtree Gluten Free Brownies

4 TBSP Wildtree Butter GSO

1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce

2 tsp baking powder

2 TBSP rice milk (more if needed)

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease a 9x9 inch baking pan with Butter GSO. Place all ingredients in a large mixing bowl and beat with an electric mixer on medium speed for 2 minutes, scraping the bowl occasionally. Pour batter into prepared pan and bake for 40-50 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean and the edges start to come away. Cool and serve.

Serves 16 (or one if you are me!)

Cook's Notes
If you can eat eggs, use 2 of them instead of the applesauce and baking powder. I find I need to add extra baking time when I swap out the eggs for applesauce. If you use 2 eggs instead, you will only need to cook 30-40 minutes.

 

To order your Wildtree Gluten Free Mixes please go to www.jenwarr.mywildtree.com.

Eat Your Greens

Our lettuce box

  

Spinach? Kale? Chard? Collards?

Do you eat any of these greens? Does the thought make you cringe?
I can honestly say that once I started eating them, I started to crave them! Collards and Kale are my favorites over Spinach due to that funny after taste.

Ever wonder why you get that taste in your mouth? Here's an explanation...

"Oxalic acid in the spinach, which is released when spinach is cooked, is the culprit. Oxalates form insoluble salts that cannot be washed away by saliva; only other foods can work them off; this is the reason that the distinctive cooked-spinach aftertaste sometimes stays on your tongue so long.

This phenomenon does not, however, occur from raw spinach, and since the intensity of oxalic acid varies from crop to crop, you won’t always experience a gritty or chalky sensation. To neutralize the effect of cooked spinach on the teeth, try using spinach in recipes that also include high-protein foods, such as milk, eggs, and cheese. Or, when plain spinach has finished cooking, drizzle it lightly with freshly squeezed lemon juice."

Our chard & kale planter

Here's an excellent chart for why you should eat your greens!

Looking for some good recipes for greens? Here's my favorite...

Skillet Full o' Greens

chunk of pancetta, chopped

2 medium zucchini, quartered and chopped

1 large leek, halved, sliced and cleaned thoroughly

big ol' bunch of collard greens, stemmed and chopped

Wildtree's Garlic Grapeseed Oil

Wildtree's CA Garlic Pepper

Bragg's Liquid Aminos (optional)

Heat a large skillet over medium high heat, add a little Garlic Grapeseed Oil and pancetta and cook until all fat is rendered and it starts to crisp up. Remove pancetta from pan and set aside. Add zucchini and leeks to pan and cook until tender and zucchini starts to brown. Add collards to pan, turn heat down and cook until collards are tender. Add pancetta back in along with a sprinkling of CA Garlic Pepper and a dash of Bragg's to taste.

Collards on our deck

To order any Wildtree groceries please go to www.jenwarr.mywildtree.com.

Watermelon Mediterranean Salad with Feta

This dish embodies the zenith of summer when watermelon and tomatoes are bursting in all their glory! Paired with refreshing cucumbers, buttery avocado, savory olives and the crunch of seeds makes this dish the perfect accompaniment to any grilled entree or just a fantastic afternoon snack!

Watermelon Mediterranean Salad with Feta

3 medium heirloom tomatoes, cored and cut into 3/4 inch pieces

1 cup watermelon, cut into cubes
1 cucumber, peeled, seeded and cut into cubes

1 avocado, cut in half, pitted and cut into cubes

4 oz feta cheese, crumbled
1 tablespoon pumpkin seeds
1 tablespoon sunflower seeds
1/2 cup kalamata olives, pitted, sliced
12 leaves spinach, torn

1 tablespoon chopped basil

1 tablespoon chopped mint

Toss all ingredients into serving bowl and then prepare dressing.

Dressing
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon honey
3 tablespoons Wildtree's Mediterranean Balsamic Dipping Oil
pinch of sea salt to taste

Whisk all dressing ingredients together and drizzle over salad.

To order your Wildtree groceries please go to www.jenwarr.mywildtree.com. To earn them for free contact me to host your own Tasting or Dinner Prep Workshop for Freezer Meals of become a Rep!