Holiday Prep: Spicy Cranberry Sauce Recipe

Cranberries are an iconic holiday staple. Whether you are eating them or decorating with them, cranberries are must. One of the Greenista Girls’ favorite recipes has a special spicy twist. Make it for your holiday party or Christmas dinner. Your guests will go crazy for it … and go crazy trying to find out your secret spices.

Spicy Cranberry Sauce with Pinot Noir

Makes 2 1/2 cups; courtesy of Simply Recipes

• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 2 cups fresh or frozen cranberries (about 8 ounces)
• 1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
• 2 cups Pinot Noir or other dry red wine
• 1 cup sugar
• 3 tablespoons chopped crystallized ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon curry powder
• Large pinch of Chinese five-spice powder

1. Heat oil in large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add cranberries and fresh ginger; stir until cranberries begin to burst, 3-5 minutes.
2. Add wine and sugar; boil until mixture is reduced to 2 1/2 cups, about 15 minutes.
3. Add crystallized ginger, curry powder and five-spice powder.
4. Serve sauce cold or warm.

Written by Greenista Girl Shubhra

Photo by Closet Cooking

U Turn: Puree of Turnip Soup

Wanna make a U-Turn with your diet … especially with all the hefty holiday food? Try adding some seasonal veggies like turnips to your meals. This Puree of Turnip Soup is super tasty with just a hint of nuttiness. Perfect for a holiday dinner.

Puree of Turnip Soup

• 2 Tbsp coconut oil
• 1 medium yellow onion, chopped
• 2 large cloves garlic, minced
• 3-4 turnips (about 1 pound), chopped into 1” pieces
• 1 medium sweet potato (about ½ pound), peeled and chopped into 1” pieces
• 2½ cup vegetable broth
• 1 cup unsweetened almond milk
• ¼ teaspoon salt, or to taste
• ½ teaspoon black pepper

1. Heat a large saucepan over medium heat. Melt the coconut oil, and add the onions and garlic. Sauté for 3-5 minutes or until onions begin to turn translucent.

2. Add the turnips and the sweet potato and sauté for 2 minutes longer. Pour in the vegetable broth and almond milk. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 20-25 minutes, or until turnips and potatoes are tender.

3. Transfer soup contents to a blender, and puree until completely smooth (blend in a couple small batches, if necessary). Pour soup back into pot and reduce at a low simmer for 5 minutes longer. Add salt to taste and black pepper.

Hi Ho Cherry-O: Cherry Mojitos

How about graduating from collecting plastic cherries from a children’s board game to collecting fresh and juicy organic cherries from your own garden to make an elegant cherry mojito? Cherries are delicious, nutritious, and a bit pricey, so we got great tips for growing your own cherries on the Organic Gardening website.  Not only do they taste great, but also look beautiful in your gardening dangling like earrings from the tree. Of course we enjoy nibbling on fresh cherries, but we also enjoy cherry pie and this refreshing cherry mojito. It’ll look great at your holiday parties, too!

Cherry Mojitos

Serves 4 to 6 – Prep time: 10 minutes + 20 minutes cooling

• 1 pound bag frozen pitted organic cherries or fresh organic cherries, pitted
• 2 cups crushed ice, plus extra to serve
• 1/2 cup packed organic fresh mint leaves
• 1/3 cup fresh organic lime juice (about 3 limes)
• 1 cup citrus flavored rum
• 1 2/3 cups organic Lime Simple Syrup, recipe below
• Fresh cherries, for garnish

Put all the ingredients (except the cherries for garnish) in a blender and blend until smooth. Pour the mixture into chilled glasses with crushed ice. Garnish with cherries.

Lime Simple Syrup

• 2 cups organic sugar
• 1 cup water
• 3 organic limes, zested

In a small saucepan, combine the sugar, water, and lime zest over medium heat. Bring to a rolling boil, reduce heat to medium, and simmer for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the sugar has dissolved. Remove the saucepan from the heat and allow the syrup to cool for 20 minutes. Strain before using.

Recipe Adapted from Food Network- Giada De Laurentiis

Written by Greenista Girl Shubhra

Photos by iFood TV

We’re All Ears: Farmers’ Market Corn Chowder

Feeling a little corny? Make this Greenista Girl fall favorite: Corn Chowder. Start by hitting up your local greenmarket to stock up on super fresh, organic veggies. Then get the house smelling yummy with this hearty soup. Perfect for a lazy fall weekend dish.

Farmers’ Market Corn Chowder

• 6 ears organic corn
• 2 tablespoons unsalted organic butter
• 2 tablespoons organic olive oil
• 2 medium organic white onions, diced
• 1 tablespoon organic garlic, chopped
• 2 branches organic thyme
• 1 fresh organic bay leaf
• 10 organic black peppercorns, cracked
• 1 cup organic white wine
• 3 cups water
• 1 cup organic heavy cream
• 3 organic potatoes, diced into 1⁄4” cubes
• Salt, black pepper, and cayenne to taste

1.     Remove corn kernels carefully with a knife by holding the earn vertical and sliding the knife down parallel. Try to keep as many kernels whole as possible.

2.      Once kernels are removed, scrape the cobs with the back of a knife over a pan to extract as much “pulp” and juice as possible.  You should have 4–5 cups of kernels and 1 to 1 1/2 cups of the scrapings.

3.     In a large saucepan, melt the butter and the olive oil, and add the onions, garlic, thyme, bay leaf, and cracked peppercorns.

4.     Cook until the onions are tender and then pour in the white wine and reduce by half.

5.     Add the water, heavy cream, half of the potatoes, corn scrapings, and 2 cups of the corn.

6.     Bring liquid to a boil then reduce to a simmer.

7.     Cook until potatoes are tender, approximately 10–15 minutes.

8.     Puree well and pass through a fine strainer.

9.     Return to a boil then simmer with remaining potatoes and corn until tender.

10.  Adjust thickness by adding more water if needed.

11.  Season to taste with salt, black pepper, and cayenne.

12.  Serve hot.

Written by Greenista Girl Shubhra

Photos by Southern Living

Recipe Adapted from FARMfood: Green Living with Chef Daniel Orr

Man Made: National Men Make Dinner Day

Ladies, are you tired of cooking dinner every night? We hear ya! Luckily it’s National Men Make Dinner Day! We can hear the cheers all across America. Ask your hubby, best friend, pops, grandpa, or any man in your life to help whip up a special something. In fact, we’ll even help out by handing them a fail-proof recipe. Get him to whip up this yummy pesto lasagna recipe … all he has to do is put it together and pop it in the oven.

Pesto Lasagna

• 8 ounces organic whole wheat lasagna noodles

• 15 ounces organic part-skim ricotta
• 1/3 cup chopped organic basil
• 1/4 cup toasted organic pine nuts
• 1/3 cup packaged organic pesto
• 4 ounces shredded organic part-skim mozzarella

1.     Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Cook the noodles according to the package directions.  Set aside.

2.     Combine the ricotta, basil, and pine nuts in a small bowl. Set aside.

3.     Spray a 9×13 baking pan with cooking spray. Spread 1/3 of the pesto into the bottom of the pan.

4.     Cover with half the noodles. Spread half the herb/ricotta mixture over the noodles.

5.     Repeat with another 1/3 of the pesto, the remaining noodles, the remaining herb/ricotta mixture, then cover the whole thing with the pesto.

6.     Sprinkle the mozzarella cheese over the top.

7.     Bake for 30-45 minutes or until heated through and bubbling.

Written by Greenista Girl Brianne

Photos by SassyHongKong