I was chatting yesterday with some online buddies about Canadian-vs-American Thanksgiving (I’d say the tacit consensus was that Americans make more of a fuss about it) and I admitted that, in the home of my childhood, we never actually celebrated T-Day. My memory about it is fuzzy (who am I kidding? My memory about everything is fuzzy these days), but I think the first traditional Thanksgiving celebration I attended was at the home of my first boyfriend’s mum.
I was madly in love with Spaghetti Ears and adored his mother, an Irishwoman who had been widowed at a young age and lived on her own in a little bungalow across town from the university.
She was a pixieish woman, perpertually smiling, her dancing blue eyes flitting about the dinner table as she regaled us with stories of her Irish relatives and friends. Her cheeks were permanently flushed pink and her bobbed gray hair, normally hugging her head like a shawl, would swing back and forth as she reached across the table to pass bread or pat my hand.
She also made the most delicious curried beef I had ever tasted (okay, so it was the only curried beef I had ever tasted). And I still possess–and use–the hand-knit tea cozy she gave me for Christmas almost 30 years ago, its red and green woolen stripes just as vibrant today as they were back then. I was honored to be invited to her holiday celebration!
Although I loved the idea behind the Thanksgiving feast (and the feast itself) from the first time I experienced it, the cranberry sauce was one aspect I just couldn’t rally behind. I always found it far too sweet for my taste; in fact, canned cranberry sauce is the reason I thought I didn’t like cranberries for many years.
Last year, I decided to combine the crimson berries with some stewed apples for a stellar Cranberry Apple Compote, which I was happy to eat alongside nut roast or on toast, and the HH was delighted to enjoy with his turkey. This year, I opted for something a little different:
[Plumberry Sauce atop a buckwheat breakfast cake, accompanied by chocolate almond butter.]
Today’s recipe comes courtesy of our organic produce delivery, which arrives like clockwork every week ,whether or not I’ve finished up the previous week’s fruits and veggies. As has happened in the past, I left some plums in their paper bag to languish on the counter, unnoticed until it was almost too late to save them.
I decided to combine the soft, squishy plums with their hardier, tarter cousins, and cooked up a quick Plumberry Compote. It offered up the perfect mix of tangy, sweet, and spreadable, with a deep magenta hue and gemlike brilliance.
[How I freeze my plumberry sauce. . . no, the color in the photo isn’t off–this pic is frozen apricot spread.]
I hope you give this unconventional cranberry sauce a try. The flavors work beautifully in tandem to offer up a thick sauce that is nearly sweet enough even on its own, without added stevia. It’s also tasty enough to use as jam on toast–something traditional cranberry sauce can’t quite match, which means that leftovers will actually get used!
It’s quickly become a favorite condiment here, as it can be used by the HH on his Thanksgiving turkey (that is, if he had had turkey this year), can be spread on some savory nut roast, can double as a chutney with a nice Indian curry, or can be used in lieu of maple syrup on a stack of pancakes or a breakfast bake (as in the photo above).
Yep–it’s time to forge a new tradition, I say!
[A new favorite–breakfast bake topped with Plumberry Sauce and chocolate almond butter.]
Plumberry Sauce or Jam (Suitable for ACD Stage 2 and Beyond)
This sauce is so easy to make, it’s almost embarassing to write it out as a recipe. Freeze any leftovers in silicone muffin tins, then pop out and store in plastic bags in the freezer, for up to 3 months.
6-7 small, ripe black plums, pitted (leave the skins on)
2 cups (480 ml) fresh or frozen cranberries
1/4 cup (60 ml) coconut sugar, Lakanto or xylitol
2 tsp (10 ml) fresh lemon juice
20-30 drops plain or vanilla stevia liquid, to your taste
In a small food processor or blender, purée the plums. Transfer to a medium pot and add the remaining ingredients except stevia.
Cook, stirring frequently, until desired thickness is reached and most of the cranberries have popped (if you have a splatter screen, this is a good time to use it. Otherwise, place a lid on the pot with just a crack open to let the steam escape. That way, you’ll avoid speckling your stovetop and any other surface within sight).
Once the desired thickness is achieved, add the stevia and stir well. Pour into a clean glass jar or container and store in the refrigerator for up to 10 days. Alternately, freeze in silicone muffin cups, then pop out of the cups and keep frozen in a plastic bag or freezer container for up to 3 months. Makes about 2 cups (480 ml).
Suitable for: ACD Stage 2 and beyond; sugar-free, gluten-free, grain-free, dairy-free, egg free, soy-free, nut free, yeast-free, vegan, low glycemic (if made with Lakanto or xylitol).
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So you use silicone bakeware….. How is it compared to the regular ones?
Roxanne, I have to admit that I’ve never used it for actual baking, only for freezing jams (or other single-serve things) and to make little carob or chocolate cups. I’m afraid to heat it (even though I know they say it’s safe. . . just doesn’t feel right to me). 🙂
Good, I am so glad to know that because I also am afraid to use them for “baking”, but you got the great idea of freezing because it would be easier to remove the food!
Exactly right! 🙂
I have interchanged grape jam for cranberry sauce in recipes and it has always provided for a great taste alternative…especially when I have had the time to make the grape jam myself 🙂
This recipe sounds fantastic and printing as I type 🙂 Every year at Thanksgiving and Christmas, I always try to make 2 or 3 new recipes. I believe this one will be a keeper! Thanks for sharing.
Mary, thanks so much, and thanks for your comment! What I love about this is that you can still use it after the holiday is over–it’s fabulous as a regular jam/spread. Your grape juice idea sounds great!
This is beautiful, Ricki! I’m all for unconventional. 🙂
Thanks, Hallie! 🙂
I have to tell you, although my entire family loves cranberry sauce, it is the one dish I can live without. My favorite thing about it is how it smells while I am cooking it. Other than that, i could take it or leave it. But this sauce? I love the idea of it!! My bountiful baskets has not had any plums for a few weeks, but I will be making this the next time it does! And those little silicone trays are exactly what I froze all of my baby food in! Brings back memories. 😉
PS that organic basket does show up regardless of what we have left on our counters or in our fridges. LOL It does help me to be more creative in using it up before my Saturday delivery though. I have come up with some interesting concoctions for sure. LOL
Same here, Kim–I’ve made many a dish that would never have seen my kitchen if not for leftover produce from our organic box! 😉
I didn’t used to be a fan of cranberry sauce either, but now I love the acidity that it adds to the meal. This sounds like a really delicious twist on cranberry sauce though I don’t think the plums were still around at Thanksgiving this year for us.
I guess it does depend on where you live. . . hope you can try this at some point, it’s so yummy! 🙂
I love your recipes. They’re always so innovative, and so completely different than anything I could imagine. It expands my mind! 🙂 Love this sauce.
Aw, thanks so much, Alta! I almost didn’t post it as it seemed SO simple. . . but simple can be best! 🙂 I loved it, too. . . I think I’ll continue making it even when it’s not the holidays!
Such a simple recipe Ricki! I love it. It looks gorgeous – the colour is rich; perfect for Thanksgiving dinner. Love the silicone freezer tray idea!
I am a latecomer to the cranberry sauce love. I was always thinking, “Look at all this food! Why on earth add THAT to your plate?” I’m going to have to make some sugar-free sauce this year!
I know–SO simple!! I loved the color, too. And I couldn’t agree more about regular cranberry sauce. 😉
Plums are one of my most favouriterest of fruits; I love this take on usually-too-sugary jam!
Thanks, Hannah! I felt that way about the cranberry-only sauce, too.
oh it is terrible to read this recipe – plums are out of season, we never get cranberries and I am out of coconut sugar – but I still want to make it! Sounds like an excellent alternative to cranberry sauce – I first tried cranberries with bought sauce and wasn’t keen but having had a chance to use them in cooking since I think it is not the best way to learn about them
Interesting that canadians don’t make such a fuss of thanksgiving – it was only when I started blogging that I learnt about canadian thanksgiving
Thanksgiving is not a really big deal up here in Canada, most people don’t even do the turkey/ham dinners. Grocery stores have no sale on the turkeys left over after the holiday, don’t know if they keep them frozen for Christmas? For the majority it’s an ordinary “day off”, making it a three day weekend (or four depending if they also take Friday off).
oh this combination sounds just lovely!!
It was! I think the HH wants this on his turkey this year. 😉
Thank you! I froze tons of plums from the orchard this fall. I set them on cookie sheets to freeze, for individual use later, for smoothies. Now I am so glad I did. This might be what I make people for their Christmas bag tuck-ins. Happy Thanksgiving!
Great way to freeze your plums, Tana! And this would be a great gift for the holidays–thanks for the idea! 🙂