Cranberry Sauce Recipe

Nothing says Thanksgiving (to me) like turkey and cranberry sauce. I love cranberries, even the canned ones. But if you have never tried a homemade cranberry sauce, you are missing out! It's so easy to make and makes the house smell like the holidays. Here's a good recipe I found on allrecipes.com. Did you know you can freeze cranberries for up to a year, so stock up now while they are on sale? I halved this recipe because it was just for our family and we have been enjoying it for a couple days. The cinnamon sticks make the house smell so nice too!

Oranged Cranberry Sauce

Ingredients

• 2 (12 ounce) packages fresh cranberries
• 1 orange, zested
• 3 cinnamon sticks
• 2 cups orange juice
• 2 cups packed brown sugar

Directions

1. In a medium saucepan, combine cranberries, orange zest, cinnamon, orange juice, and brown sugar. Add enough water to cover, and bring to a boil over high heat. Immediately reduce heat, and simmer for about 1 hour, or until the sauce has thickened. Taste for sweetness, and adjust with additional sugar if necessary. You can not overcook, so continue cooking until you have a good thick consistency. Let mixture cool, then refrigerate in a covered container.

Yummy Crock Pot Meal

I have been following "A Year of Crockpotting" blog. I made this recipe last night and it was fabulous. We really liked the herbs and spices in it. Several people came to the house while it was cooking (including the kids friends) and said how wonderful it smelled. Kaylee's friend even asked if she could stay for dinner! http://crockpot365.blogspot.com/2009/03/crockpot-hirino-psito-slow-roasted-pork.html

Instead of the pork, I made it with a brisket I got on sale for $2 at Target and it will last 3 days. Did you know if you go to Target early in the morning, you can often get meat at an awesome price, sometimes free with the peelie coupons on top of the package? I got 5 pounds of Turkey cutlets for free the other day.

Anyway, I think this recipe would also taste wonderful with a turkey breast. Then shred and put on a sandwich roll and spread with cream cheese. Maybe sweet potato fries on the side.

The only problem was I was hungry all day because the house smelled so good!

Whole Wheat Bread 101

Things you will need:

1. Bosch Mixer: $389
http://www.mykitchencenter.com/Details.cfm?ProdID=1192
2. Electric Wheat Grinder (I have a Whisper Mill):$179
3. Bread bags: $5.99/for 100
4. 7 Norpro teflon waffle pans: $10 each
Don't skimp on these, I have tried a lot of pans, and these make the crust perfect.
5. Good quality White Wheat + ingredients for the bread

These prices are taken from the Bosch Kitchen Center website, I'm sure you can find them online used or cheaper. I know it seems expensive, but we asked for the big things for Christmas and in a couple of years it will pay for itself. Don't skimp on not getting the Bosch blender. It's worth it! We make yummy smoothies all the time in it. More on that in a later post...

If your family eats one loaf of bread per week at $3.99 each (comparable quality and taste to the home made bread), you will spend $200 a year.

If you make your own, you will spend $16 a year at .33 cents each. It takes about an hour a month from start to finish.

You can also make bagels, pitas, tortillas, pizza crusts, breadsticks, cinnamon rolls, rolls... whatever. It's not only for bread, it's a traditional mixer too. However, I still love my Kitchen Aid and it's physical presence in my kitchen. The Bosch gets stored in the pantry for bread making and smoothies only and the Kitchen Aid is on the counter for every day use.

Here's the recipe: http://www.mykitchencenter.com/recipes.cfm
Here's some additional recipes: http://www.spoilthecook.com/bosch/Include.php?page=recipes

I have made the 12 grain bread many times and it is really good. It costs about .50 cents a loaf. I deviate a little from the recipe as I grind the 9 grain cereal with the flour, because it's just too crunchy for me the other way.

Give it a try, it's fun and satisfying!