Giving Thanks

It's been a hot minute since I've posted on this blog. In fact, it took me at least a half-hour to actually navigate to it and sign in! 

Today is the day before Thanksgiving, and I have so much to be grateful for. Just over a year ago, I was diagnosed with early stage breast cancer and was facing surgery and an unknown landscape of treatment. I still hosted Thanksgiving for the family, and it was a very poignant event.

Now, after 2 surgeries, 4 rounds of chemotherapy, and 15 radiation treatments, I am cancer free. I am also blessed with a new perspective on life and what deserves my time and attention and what's worth fretting over. (Hint: it's not worth stressing over a preparing a family dinner or spilling coffee, which I just did!). 

Connecting with family and friends, keeping my body healthy and strong, engaging in activities that feed my soul (like writing and travel) are things that I'm focusing on.

Shopping and Prep Work

I typically take off the week of Thanksgiving to prepare for the big day, and this year was no exception. However, we celebrated our 35th wedding anniversary and attended a Heritage Fire x Whiskies of the World Pebble Beach Food and Wine event on Friday night. While this bourbon-centric and fancy-food evening was fun and tasty, the recovery period set us back a bit. (We're not 25 anymore!) As a result, my normal weekend prep work of making lists, checking the pantry, and shopping did not happen. We'd been collecting ingredients over the past couple of weeks, and Natalie had already scored a 20# turkey at work, so I decided to wing it. After all, I've been doing this for decades. 

Thanksgiving Officially Begins

Last night, Tuesday, was the official beginning of the holiday. Each year, the first thing I make is my brandied cranberry sauce. It's simple and tasty, can be prepared well in advance, and makes the house smell like Thanksgiving. 

Diane's Brandied Cranberries

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

Ingredients:

• 12 oz. bag of fresh cranberries
• 1 navel orange for zest and juice
• 1 1/2 cups of granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup of brandy

Directions:

• Rinse the cranberries, discard any soft ones, and pour into an 8x8 baking dish
• Add the sugar to the dish
• Zest the orange, which should yield about 2T of zest, and add to the dish
• Juice the orange, and add 2 to 4T of juice to the dish
• Add the brandy and stir ingredient until combined
• Place baking dish, uncovered, in the oven and back for about an hour, stirring occasionally. Some of the cranberries will have darkened to a deep crimson, some will have broken, and there will still be some liquid in the dish.

As the cranberries cool, the liquid will gel and create a wonderful consistency for the relish. When cool, transfer to a storage container and refrigerate. (Trust me, you won't have room in your refrigerator for an 8x8 pan!)

Serving:

You can serve the relish straight from the fridge. I like to warm it up a bit in the microwave, put it in a fancy serving bowl of Mamie's, and garnish with a little fresh orange zest. (Pro tip: to satisfy the "traditionalists" in the family, be sure to have a can of jellied cranberry sauce on hand.)

Next up:

Wednesday prep day: Stuffin' Muffins and Chardonnay Gravy. Now I have to get back to the work and will write about it later!