The Best Cranberry Orange Chutney with Apples and Pecans
Cranberry Orange Chutney with Apples and Pecans is an excellent alternative to traditional cranberry sauce. This recipe is full of fruit, and nuts and flavored with cinnamon, cloves and your favorite brandy! The tartness of the cranberries is perfectly balanced by the sweetness of the apples, pears and oranges in this recipe. Once you try this, you may never go back to plan cranberry sauce again.
This recipe is not only delicious but it is also extremely versatile. It can play the traditional role of the Thanksgiving side, but it is also excellent served as part of a cheese board or as a topping for a bowl of vanilla ice cream. No need to wait until the holidays to serve this sweet tart chutney.
What Is The Difference Between Chutney and Relish?
So just what is the difference between a chutney and a relish? Chutney is made with chunks of fruit or vegetables and is generally cooked long enough for the fruit to soften. A relish is normally made with chunks of raw fruits or vegetables. Either can be made as sweet or as tart as you like.
Ingredients you will need
As I said this chutney is chock full of fruit. Cranberries are of course the main ingredient. The tart cranberries are complemented by a whole host of ingredients: diced apple and pear, the juice and zest of an orange and a lemon, dried sweet cherries, cinnamon, cloves, pecans, brandy and sugar. The fruits are cooked with the cranberries until they are tender and then the nuts and brandy are added at the end. This ensures that there is just the right amount of crunchy texture to the mixture.
Making this recipe is easy.
- This is a pretty simple recipe if you do your prep work ahead of time. Start by zesting the orange and the lemon and the juicing them and set that them aside.
- Combine the cranberries, sugar and water in a medium pan and cook over medium heat until the cranberries start to burst.
- In the meantime, peel core and dice the apple and the pear.
- When the cranberries are boiling and popping, add the orange and lemon juice and zest, the diced apple and pear, the dried cherries, 2 cinnamon sticks and 1/4 tsp. of cloves.
- Stir well and reduce the heat to low. Allow the mixture to cook for 30 minutes.
- When the chutney is cooked, remove from heat and add the chopped pecans and Chambord or Brandy. You can also substitute another flavored liquor or port wine for brandy.
- Allow the chutney to cool to room temperature.
What can you serve this chutney with?
This is the perfect condiment for Thanksgiving or Christmas and it really looks beautiful on your table too! But there are plenty of other dishes that this recipe accompanies very well. Easy One Pan Roasted Chicken and Vegetables or Easy Herb Roasted Chicken would both go great with this chutney. It would also pair well with roast pork.
If you really want to go outside the box, try it as a topping for Flourless Chocolate Cake or Panna Cotta.
The Best Cranberry Orange Chutney with Apples and Pecans
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Ingredients
- 1 cup Water
- 12 oz Cranberries Fresh
- 1 cup Sugar
- 1 Orange Zest and juice
- 1 Lemon Zest and Juice
- 1 Apple Peeled and diced
- 1 Pear Peeled and diced
- 2 Cinnamon sticks
- ¼ tsp Cloves ground
- ½ cup Dried cherries
- 1 cup Pecans chopped
- 1/4 cup Chambord or Brandy
Instructions
- Combine water, cranberries and sugar in a medium pan and bring to a slow boil over medium heat. Cook until the cranberries start to burst, stirring occasionally.
- Add the orange juice and zest, lemon juice and zest, apples, pears, cinnamon sticks, cloves and dried cherries and stir to combine. Lower the heat to low and cook for 30 minutes.
- Remove from the heat and stir in the pecans and Chambord or Brandy. Allow to cool to room temperature. Remove the the cinnamon sticks before serving. Can be served at room temperature or refrigerated for up to two weeks.
