Cranberry, orange and yogurt loaf cake

Feel Good Food - December 2013 Cranberries Round Up

At the beginning of the month (which seems an age away now!) I asked you to come up with something that was made with cranberries which would fit in with the Feel Good Food philosophy. Thank you to all of you who contributed and commented. Whilst dried cranberries are available all year round remember fresh cranberries can be frozen for some treats later in the year or you may want to bookmark some recipes for making next year.

We kicked off with self-confessed fresh cranberries addict Jen from Blue Kitchen Bakes. Taking advantage of a night to herself she whipped up a gorgeous winter salad of Roast Beetroot, Squash, Feta, Lentil and Cranberries. Proving that salads can be for all year round she even had enough for a tasty lunch the next day.

Roast Beetroot, Squash, Feta, Lentil and Cranberry Salad

There was a touch of far away lands in Deena Kakaya's fabulous Christmas gift creation of Plantain chips, cashews & dried cranberries in coconut, chilli and cinnamon. Deena was inspired by some plantain given to her from neighbours and memories of India and St. Lucia.

Plantain chips, cashews & dried cranberries in coconut, chilli and cinnamon

There is a wonderful range of flours and ingredients now for people who are gluten intolerant but as Elizabeth at Elizabeth's Kitchen Diary has found not all recipes work. However she has created a winner with her Gluten-free Chewy Oatmeal Cran-Raisin Cookies. Very thoughtfully she made these especially for dance instructor to save him from his shop bought 'cardboardy' snacks.

Gluten-free Chewy Oatmeal Cran-Raisin Cookies

A fruit bowl raid by Michelle at Utterly Scrummy Food for Families resulted in her Festive Fruit Pies. A great way of using up some fresh fruit and a terrific alternative to traditional mince pies.

Festive Fruit Pies

I asked you at the beginning of the month for a great Cranberry Sauce and Jean from Delightful Repast presented me with her Christmas and Thanksgiving dinner table favourite. She has infused it with mace and orange.

Cranberry Sauce

Christmas is an expensive time of year for just about everybody and Vanesther of Bangers & Mash gave us a reminder of the Archbishop of Canterbury's recent message about Christmas with her White Chocolate, Cardamon and Cranberry Cookies. Giving presents is still OK but think about what you could make for someone and the love that goes into that effort rather than buying the most expensive item in the shops.

White Chocolate, Cardamon and Cranberry Cookies

If you are looking for an indulgent festive treat but without the fat then look no further than this Cranberry and Cinnamon Swiss Roll. Another wonderful offering from the Cranberry Queen that is Jen from Blue Kitchen Bakes, it is a fatless spiced sponge filled with juicy, fresh cranberries.

Cranberry and Cinnamon Swiss Roll

If I told you the recipe title was Pecan and Cranberry Cheese Log you probably wouldn't expect a vegan recipe but Janet from The Taste Space did achieve this. Her adapted recipe takes a couple of days to make but well worth it at this time of year.

Pecan and Cranberry Cheese Log

I love Christmas food and yes I love a Brussels sprout or two as well on my Christmas dinner plate. To sway non-believers of their goodness Louisa from Eat Your Veg has added a few tasty but healthy extras in her Orange & Cranberry Roasted Sprouts.

Orange & Cranberry Roasted Sprouts

There was also another recipe from Janet from The Taste Space with her Holiday Salad with Cranberry-Orange Vinaigrette. She was challenged to come up with something for her work colleagues that was nut-free, no eggs, gluten-free and vegetarian but managed to please everyone with her refreshing multi-use dressing.

Holiday Salad with Cranberry-Orange Vinaigrette

If you've not planned your New Year's Eve nibbles menu yet then take a look at Caroline's Festive Cheese Ball with Nuts and Cranberries on Caroline Makes.... Full of flavour they also contain red onion, mango chutney, garlic and Worcestershire sauce.

Festive Cheese Ball with Nuts and Cranberries

As your hostess this month I thought it was only right I should give you recipes with both fresh and dried cranberries. My first creation was inspired by an apple and cranberry crumble recipe in the Leon Friends & Family Cookbook but I changed the topping to my own oats and ground almonds for a Spiced Cranberry and Apple Oaty Crumble.

Spiced Cranberry and Apple Oaty Crumble

My second offering was a Christmas Cranberry and Orange Stollen made with dried cranberries but given an extra festive flavour with the zest and juice of an orange. To give it a bit of a feel good factor I reduced the butter and sugar in it and made it alcohol free. It took a time to make but didn't seem to last very long in our house!

Cranberry and Orange Stollen

Thank you to everyone who contributed this month with their wonderful selection of Feel Good Food cranberry recipes and to Victoria for letting me guest host. That's it for December and indeed for 2013 so head over to Victoria at A Kick At The Pantry Door in 2014 for the start of another year of Feel Good Food.

Cranberry and Orange Stollen - S is for...Stollen

Cranberry and Orange Stollen

Is it a cake or is it a bread? Whatever classification you want to put it in Stollen is full of lovely Christmasy flavours such as dried fruits, nuts, marzipan and mixed spices. Stollen is of course German in origin and there are mentions of it from the 15^th Century. The first Stollen were very unexciting and quite bland tasting. At that time in Germany the Advent period was a time of fasting similar to Lent. No butter was allowed and the recipe of the time contained no fruit or marzipan. Over the years this has developed into the Stollen we like to eat today.

Most Stollen recipes require the fruit to be soaked in rum overnight. Not being a drinker I wasn't sure we had any rum in the house (apparently we do so I've been told) so in order to plump up the fruit a bit I decided to use the juice and zest from the orange we had brought back from a Christingle service. I've also cut down on the amount of butter and sugar used. 

Click here for a printable recipe.

Ingredients

Juice and zest of 1 Orange

2oz (55g) Dried Cranberries

2oz (55g) Candied peel

2oz (55g) Sultanas

14oz (400g) Strong white bread flour plus extra for dusting

½ tsp (2.5ml) Salt

½ tsp (2.5ml) Mixed spice

2oz (55g) Unsalted butter, diced into small cubes

2 tbsp (30ml) Caster sugar

½ oz (10g) Easy-blend dried yeast

7 fl oz (200ml) Lukewarm milk (1 minute in the microwave)

1 Large egg

1oz (28g) Blanched almonds, chopped finely
5oz (140g) Marzipan

Method

1. Put the dried fruit in a bowl along with the orange juice and zest. Stir and then set aside.

2. Sift the flour, salt and mixed spice into a large bowl and then rub in the butter.

3. Add the sugar and the yeast and stir all the ingredients together.

4. In a separate bowl or jug add the egg to the milk and beat well.

5. Make a well in the centre of the flour mixture and pour in the milk and egg. With a spoon (I use a soup spoon!) stir all the ingredients until it comes together to form a dough.

6. Flour a smooth surface well and start to knead the dough. The idea is to stretch the dough so don't worry being too heavy-handed. Do this for about 10 minutes – put the radio on or listen to some music as this will make the 10 minutes seem much shorter.

7. Once it is smooth form the dough into a ball and put back into the bowl. Cover and and leave in a warm place for about an hour to rise – I use a warm, damp tea towel and put it in my airing cupboard. You can also lightly oil some cling film and put it next to a window with the sun coming through, next to a warm radiator or next to a pre-heated oven.

8. Meanwhile prepare the marzipan by rolling it out into a sausage shape about 8 inches (20cm) long.

9. When the dough has doubled in size give it a couple of punches to release any air bubbles.

10. Flour the work surface again and knead the dough again.

11. Spread it out on the floured surface and the scatter the dried fruit, orange juice and almonds along it.

12. Fold it in and then knead again so all the fruit is equally distributed. It will be very sticky so keep flouring the surface.

13. Stretch the dough out so it measures about 9 x 7 inches (23x18 cm). Lay the marzipan in the middle and fold over each side to enclose it.

14. Press down lightly on the seam then turn over and place a greased baking tray.

15. Cover again with a tea towel or cling film and return to the warm place for about an hour until it has doubled in size again.

16. Meanwhile pre-heat the oven to 190°C/Gas mark 5.

17. Once the Stollen has risen bake for 25-30 minutes until it is golden and sounds hollow underneath. Leave to cool on a wire rack.

18. Once cool cover with foil and leave at least a day to mature. Before serving dust with icing sugar.

Spiced Cranberry and Apple Oaty Crumble

Spiced Cranberry and Apple Oaty Crumble

It doesn't matter what the weather is like a oaty crumble is always a welcome at JibberJabber Towers. Throughout the year we have changes in the fruit and what we serve with it – cream, yoghurt or custard but the oaty topping remains.

With a nod to the festive season and my role as this month's host of Feel Good Food I felt it time for some cranberries to make an appearance in our Sunday crumble. I decided to combine them with some Bramley apples and the result was it was nice. That's it – nice. Not something that is going to inspire you to rush out and buy the ingredients for this recipe. It didn't have the juiciness of plums or the luxury of freshly picked blackberries. I was then flicking through my copy of Leon Friends & Family: Book 4 which I received as a from Louisa at Eat your veg. In it was a recipe for a cranberry and apple crumble with a bit of added zing. That recipe had a flour based topping which I never make because my husband isn't that keen on flour crumbles and oats are far better for you anyway. I've reduced the quantities to fit my crumble dish and of course added by own oaty crumble topping.

I am sending this over to Vanesther at Bangers & Mash for this month's cinnamon themed The Spice Trail challenge.

Obviously this is my own entry for Feel Good Food that I am hosting this month on behalf of Victoria at A Kick At The Pantry Door.

Jen at Blue Kitchen Bakes is also doing a fresh cranberry link up.

Equipment: Oven-proof dish (mine measures 17cm x 23cm)

Ingredients

2 Bramley apples (should weigh around 400g), peeled, cored and cut into slices.

100g Fresh cranberries

25g Demerara sugar

Zest and juice 1 orange

¼ tsp Ground cinnamon

¼ tsp Mixed spice

Grating of fresh nutmeg or ⅛ tsp ground nutmeg.

Topping

140g Porridge oats

28g Ground almonds

85g Demerara sugar

55g Unsalted butter, cut into small pieces.

Method

1. Pre-heat the oven to 180°C/Gas mark 4.

2. Place the apples and cranberries into the dish. Sprinkle the sugar, orange zest and juice, and spices over the fruit.

3. In a separate bowl weigh out the oats and add the almonds and sugar.

4. Put the butter into the bowl and stir so all the ingredients are mixed in and the butter is covered with the mixture.

5. Spoon evenly over the apples and cranberries until it is all covered.

6. Cook for 20 minutes until the oats on top have browned.