Cranberry Citrus Salad

A show-stopper salad that takes advantage of winter produce.  Filled with cranberries and oranges this salad will brighten up any meal!

Cranberry Citrus Salad

I love a really good salad.  This one uses produce found during the winter months and is a great side salad to all types of meat.  The presentation is outstanding on this salad and is completely company worthy but also perfect for the crowd at home.  I served this on Christmas Day and found that is was actually my favorite dish of the whole meal.  It's that good!

A light and fresh salad that is bursting with tart fresh cranberries and sweet juicy Cara Cara oranges.  You also get a little bite from some red onion, and crunch from the celery.  All of this sits a top of a bed of spicy arugula and is sprinkled with some mint for another pop of freshness.  This is one heck of a salad!

What goes with this salad?

• This salad can go with any type of protein, beef, fish, pork, or chicken.
• I served this at Christmas along with Filet Mignon's.
• Serve with a nice crusty bread on the side
• Serve with Grilled Balsamic Chicken, Red Wine and Rosemary Flat Iron Steak, Fig and Ginger Glazed Pork Tenderloins

What Ingredients do I need?

• fresh cranberries
• Cara Cara oranges
• celery
• red onion
• sugar
• lemon juice
• ginger - i used pureed ginger
• arugula
• fresh mint - this really makes the dish
• olive oil

Substitutions and Variations

• Use Navel oranges instead of Cara Cara
• Use escarole or red leaf lettuce instead of arugula
• I would use fresh cranberries if available.  Frozen cranberries will work too, just be sure to thaw them
• don't like mint?  leave it off
• use shallot instead of red onion
• add sunflower seeds for added crunch
• Blood oranges would work nicely as a substitution

Kitchen Tips and Notes

• Start this salad earlier in the day. The cranberry topping need to meld together for 1 hour before serving.
• A food processor makes quick work of chopping the cranberries.  Use the pulse feature.
• If you don't like a really strong onion flavor cut them and place them in cold water for 15 minutes.  This will cut down on the bite of the onion.
• Cutting segments from an orange is called supreme.  This process gets rid of the membranes between the segments and any bitter white pith. You will end up with prettier and tastier fruit slices.  YouTube has videos on how to do this technique.

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Cranberry Citrus Salad

serves 4

1 cup fresh cranberries
2 Cara Cara oranges
1/2 cup celery, sliced
1/4 cup red onion, diced
2 Tablespoons sugar
1 Tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon fresh ginger, grated
3 cups arugula
2 Tablespoon fresh mint, chopped
1 Tablespoon olive oil

In a food processor add cranberries and pulse 5 times to coarsely chop, or chop by hand.  Transfer to a bowl.  Cut peel from the oranges making sure that there is no with pith left on the orange.  Cut sections from the orange over the bowl with the cranberries to catch any juice.  Add sections to the cranberries.  Add the celery, onion, sugar, lemon juice, and ginger.  Stir to combine.  Cover and refrigerate at least 1 hour.

In a medium bowl toss arugula with the mint and the oil.  Place on a platter and top with the cranberry orange mixture.  Serve.  

adapted from BHG.com

Cranberry Orange Muffins - Small Batch

Wonderful bakery style muffins bursting with the sweet tart flavors of fresh cranberries and bright orange citrus.  The perfect winter breakfast treat!

Cranberry Orange Muffins

If you follow me then you know that MGG and I love our weekend breakfasts.  Since the pandemic has started baking has become a weekly pleasure.  The other day MGG was talking about how he misses Trader Joe's since he hasn't been in 10 months.  He mentioned a particular item, Cranberry Orange Bread, that was discontinued quite a while back.  He asked me to make him some because he loved it so much.  I was more than happy to oblige!  At first I was set on making a quick bread but then due to the cooking time (50-60 minutes) I decided to make muffin instead since he was hovering around the kitchen waiting to start cooking breakfast.  

Muffins only take 18-20 minutes to bake so they are a quicker item to throw together when the crowd is starving!  Not only are muffins great for breakfast or brunch, they are perfect for grab and go snacks, as well as a sweet with coffee or hot tea.  These muffins in particular use fresh cranberries that give you a bite or tartness and are filled with orange flavors from juice, zest, and a bit of orange extract.  Orange and cranberry are one of those perfect combinations like peanut butter and jelly, that just go together.  These muffins will leave you warm and satisfied, and possibly reaching for the next one!

What Ingredients do I need?

• eggs
• milk
• orange juice
• canola oil
• flour
• sugar
• baking powder
• salt
• orange zest
• orange extract - optional
• fresh cranberries - you can use dried if you like but they won't give you as much flavor as fresh.  In the winter I buy bags of fresh cranberries and freeze them!

Substitutions and Variations

• Walnuts, almonds, or pecans would be a good addition
• You can leave out the extract, or use vanilla if you like
• Store bought orange juice works well in this recipe
• Dried cranberries will work but will not provide as much freshness or tartness.
• Dried cherries can be substituted for the cranberries
• Gluten free flour may be substituted
• Sugar substitutes may be used instead of sugar
• Use sour cream, yogurt, or buttermilk instead of milk

Kitchen Tips and Notes

• 1st rule of them when making muffins is not to "overmix" the batter.  You want it batter to just come together.  Little spots of flour is okay.
• To get high muffin tops turn your oven up to 400 degrees.
• Make sure you are using fresh baking powder.  To test put 1/2 teaspoon into 1/4 cup of boiling water.  If it bubbles, you are good.
• Purchase a 6 well muffin tin for small batches
• Double the recipe for 12 muffins
• Muffins can be frozen individually and kept for 3 months

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Cranberry Orange Muffins

yield:  6 muffins

1 egg, beaten

1/4 cup milk

1/4 cup orange juice

1/4 cup canola oil

1/2 teaspoon orange extract

1 1/2 cups flour

1/2 cup sugar

1 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons baking powder

2 teaspoons orange zest

1/2 cup fresh cranberries, rough chopped

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.  Spray a 6 well muffin pan with cooking spray and set aside.

To a large bowl add the egg, milk, orange juice, canola oil, and orange extract.  Whisk to combine.  Add the flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, and orange zest to the bowl.  Stir until just combined.  Do not overmix.  Fold in the chopped cranberries.

Using a large cookie scoop, distribute the batter evenly among the 6 muffin wells.  Place in the oven and bake for 18-20 minutes until the tops are golden brown and set.  Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the pan for 10 minutes.  Remove from the pan and allow to cool on a wire rack.  Serve.

Other Muffin recipes you may like:

• Mexican Hot Chocolate Muffins
• Cherry Almond Muffins
• Celebration Muffins
• Lemon Blueberry Muffins
• Bakery Style Banana Nut Muffins
• Strawberry Sour Cream Muffins
• Three Citrus Muffins

Slow Cooker Apple Crisp

Have dessert ready when you are by making this Slow Cooker Apple Crisp.  It's filled with warm cinnamon apples and topped with a crunchy oat topping that's perfect with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

Slow Cooker Apple Crisp

During the winter we love the abundance of apples that are in season and eat them in a variety of ways.  One of my favorites is to eat them for dessert as in apple pie, or apple crisp.  Today's version is cooked in the slow cooker.  This allows you to be hands free and dessert will be ready when you are.  Love that!

Perfect with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, warm apples coated in toasty cinnamon are topped with a crunchy almond oatmeal brown sugar mixture that make this dessert irresistible.  Make sure to ready the tips as I have a trick for you so the topping doesn't get all soggy.

What do I need to make apple crisp?

• Slow cooker
• Knife
• Apple corer
• Vegetable peeler
• Mixing bowls
• Rubber spatula

What Ingredients do I need?

• apples (I chose 4 granny smith and 4 Jazz apples for flavor variety)
• lemon juice (helps the apples from turning brown)
• brown sugar (light or dark)
• cinnamon (good quality cinnamon)
• oatmeal
• sliced almonds
• flour
• butter

Substitutions and Variations

• substitute chopped pecans for the almonds (I typically use pecans in my crisps but wanted to change it up a bit)
• use coconut oil instead of butter to make this vegan
• use a variety of apples instead of just granny smith.  Jazz, envy, honeycrips, braeburn, and cortland are all good baking apples.
• Serve this with ice cream
• Drizzle with caramel
• Serve this as a hot breakfast (do I dare??)
• Substitute pears for apples
• Add cranberries to the apple mixture
• Add blueberries to the apple mixture

Kitchen Tips and Notes

• To keep the topping from getting soggy, place several paper towels over the slow cooker and then place the lid on it.  This will catch the moisture that develops.
• Use a good cinnamon since it is the star of the show
• Use ripe firm cooking apples
• Cook on high 3-4 hours or low 6-8 hours

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Slow Cooker Apple Crisp

serves 6-8

8 apples, peeled, cored and thinly-sliced (I used a mixture of Granny Smith and Envy)
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 cup old-fashioned oats
2/3 cup sliced almonds
1/2 cup flour
1/3 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
4 tablespoons melted butter

In a large mixing bowl add peeled, cored, and sliced apples.  Sprinkle with lemon juice and toss to coat. Sprinkle the brown sugar and cinnamon and toss until evenly coated.   Pour the entire mixture into the slow cooker insert, making sure the apples are spread our evenly.  

In a medium bowl add the oats, almonds, flour, sugar, and cinnamon.  Mix to combine.  Drizzle the melted butter over the mixture, and then stir until well coated.  Top the apples with the oat mixture, trying to cover most of the apples.

Place several paper towels on top of the slow cooker, and place the lid on top.  Cook on high for 3-4 hours, or on low for 6-8 hours until the apples are soft and easily pierced with a knife.  Serve in individual bowls with ice cream if desired.