Ben-Inspired Electric Cranberry Sauce

Today's first recipe is a shout out to Ben - a fellow food blogger - at Kissing the Cook.  Ben does some fun things and seems like a fun guy.  I wanted to do something a bit different this year than my usual homemade cranberry sauce which usually has ginger and port as supporting ingredients.  Ben's recipe called for brandy, apricots and apples.

http://kissthecook-ben.blogspot.com/2010/12/electric-cranberry-sauce-with-apples.html

Apricots I have on hand, having just made a fantastic tagine last weekend, but brandy....no....uh...apples....no. So I swapped it out the brandy for rum.  For me, good rum doesn't necessarily mean aged for a certain time or in a certain way, it just means it tasted like what I had in Belize earlier this year.  I am not really a rum drinker, and don't really even like Jamaican rums, however, since I was in Belize in April I have been searching for a rum that comes as close as possible to the glorious nectar they produce there since we don't get much in the way of Belizian imports in Toronto.  In this case, 5 yr old El Dorado Demerara from Guyana.  Yes, I said Guyana.  The closest we have come to Belizian rum though is Ron Abuelo Anejo Reserva Especial from Panama.

Ben-Inspired Electric Cranberry Sauce


1/2 cup dried apricots, chopped
1/3 cup rum
1 bag cranberries
Juice and zest of one orange
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 tsp salt/1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg

Soak chopped apricots in rum while you prepare the other ingredients. Combine 2 cups of cranberries the juice and zest of one orange, 1/2 cup of sugar, ¼ teaspoon of salt, ½ teaspoon of cinnamon, and ½ teaspoon of nutmeg in a saucepan. Heat it to boiling, then reduce it to a simmer until the cranberries are tender and start to burst, about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Combine 1 tablespoon of cornstarch and 1 tablespoon of water, and mix into the cranberry mixture, cooking until thickened. Add the apricots, including the brandy, and heat until cooked through and the smell of alcohol subsides, about 3 minutes. If necessary, add additional sugar to taste. (I've found adding another 3 tablespoons works for me, but you may like more or less.).