Thanksgiving will be comin’ round the mountain in just a few days now you know, folks. I just can’t wait. It’s always such an enjoyable day. I love enjoyable days. Days spent eating delicious food, and visiting with wonderful family members. Looking forward to it!
Then….I filled my blender up with cranberries. (While running to the sink every 30 seconds to pour water over my burned hands) Trying to get the cranberries to break up in the bottom of the blender, I stuck a wooden spoon down into the cranberries and chopped the thing to bits. At this point I spent a good 5 minutes contemplating the pros and cons of inflicting wood poisoning on my family. My blender can grind things up pretty fine you know.
Then…. I poured the CranberryWoodChipDelight down the disposal.
another form of plumbing….
in a separate room…..(white porcelain piece of work with a lid)
got all plunger needy.
Don’t hold that picture in your mind for too long…this is a food blog you know.
But lucky for us….this Cranberry Cream Cheese Dip is super fabulous! My TeenNephewJayDee would give it the “like” perfect thumbs up. It’s got a little bit of a spicy kick to it. If spicy-kick isn’t your cup of tea, no worries. Just leave the jalapeno out. Then you would also most definitely not burn your hands with it’s venomous seeds. Double bonus!
Ingredients
- 1 12 oz package fresh cranberries
- 1/4 C green onion, chopped
- 1/4 C cilantro, chopped
- 1 small jalapeno pepper
- 1 1/4 C sugar
- 1/4 t cumin
- 2 T lemon juice
- dash salt
- 2 8 oz packages cream cheese
Instructions
Recipe from Heather Peterson
191 comments
Oh, that does sound good! I might use lime juice instead of the lemon though. I'll have to give it a go for the Holidays. Thanks for sharing!
He!He!He! Oh my Heavens! I almost wet my pants, I was laughing so hard! Don't you just love days like that! At least the wood chips count as fiber! Your recipe sounds delicious with or without wood chips.
Oh, why did I think I was the only one? Last night I was feeding my family of six plus two young men with big appetites. I called to make sure they were hungry and that they were going to be prompt. Then I started cooking my dinner of ham, scalloped potatoes and peas. I pulled the ham out of the freezer and started thawing it in hot water just enough to get the wrapper off. There was a strange black jell all over the ham and I started peeling it off. About half way through, I realized it didn't come off too well, and called the company that distributes it, only to hear a recording saying the black stuff is edible and don't take it off. Now the ham looked positively gross! Nevertheless, into the oven it went! I still had an hour and a half till company arrived. I thought that I should maybe add some rolls to the menu, because my hubby loves them so much, but the bread machine takes too long to make dough, so I started making it all by hand. I set out my yeasty milk/butter/sugar mixture to proof, and started slicing potatoes. That's when my toddler informed me that she needed to go potty and I had to come with her. Finally I got back to the potatoes and got them all peeled and sliced into a bowl of water when I realized that half an hour had passed and I hadn't added the flour to my bread stuff. I finished mixing up the dough, and got back to the potatoes. I got them in the oven with the ham and tried to hurry my bread dough by setting next to the fire place, but it wouldn't budge! In walks my husband and asks if there will be dessert. Well I can't put anything in the oven, and home made pudding wouldn't chill in time. Thankfully I had a frozen apple pie (pre-cooked even) on hand. Did I mention it was frozen? I squeezed the pie into the oven somehow, and took out the ham. 15 minutes left and the ham is still frozen in the middle, the potatoes aren't done, and the dough hasn't risen much. I put my microwave to good use, but I felt awful about the whole thing. In the end it was the pie that made everything OK. I'm glad I'm not alone in my craziness sometimes!
We loved this at the holidays and I was in the mood to make it again but couldn't find cranberries. I substituted strawberries and blueberries and it came out almost as yummy. I actually made it for the 4th and it went well with the color scheme:)
Addy,
What a clever idea! I'll have to give it a try. Thanks for the tip and have a great night!
~Jamie
I just read recently that if you put vegetable oil on your hands before handling peppers, it keeps those oils from getting into your skin! Next time. This looks delicious and I am anxious to try it.
Jamie- Have you ever let the cranberry mixture sit over night?
Sounds great! So you don't have to boil the cranberries? Aren't they hard as rocks fresh? Thanks for the recipe.
Yum…I may just have to try this for Supper Club this Saturday evening!!!
Emily E,
The cranberry mixture can definitely sit overnight. The flavors will continue to combine and soak into each other. Good luck! Hope you love it!
Anonymous,
No, you don't boil the cranberries. Chopping them and then letting them soak in the sugar really breaks them up nicely. Hope you enjoy it!
Thanks,
~Jamie
Looks absolutely amazing. Definitely making it this holiday season! thanks for sharing.
We can't get fresh cranberries here. Can I use frozen? I really hope so, this looks amazing!
Saw this on Pinterest and it looks great. I'm downright scared of the jalapenos now after reading your experience, so think I'll blend horseradish with the cream cheese and top with the cranberry mixture. Hope it works. Thanks!
I just got this off of Pinterest and decided to make it today… holy crap!! awesome! I basically just put all of the ingredients in my food processor (because I'm lazy today) so it's not as pretty, but my husband and I ate it up!! And then we didn't want to eat dinner.
Anonymous,
Frozen cranberries will work, absolutely. Good luck! Hope you love it!
~Jamie
You don't cook the cranberries at all??!! Can't wrap my brain around that.. they're kind of… foamy? when they're uncooked! What provides the saucy liquid it seems is in the pics??
Sabrina,
Once the cranberries are chopped and then soak in the sugary ingredients they kind of break down and become more of a chunky sauce. Good luck! Hope you love it!
~Jamie
I made this for our Supper Club on Saturday night and it was amazing!!! Gave you a shout out on my blog!
http://www.southernsomedays.com/2011/11/supper-club-and-true-friendship.html
This is CRAZY good! I halved the recipe, but I only used about 1/4 c. of sugar. I can't imagine using that much sugar?? Thank you so much for this awesome recipe! It's the perfect mix of salty/sugar/sour. YUM!
Made this for a church get together and it got rave reviews — making it again for a Thanksgiving and praise gathering at our house — can't wait! Thanks for the recipe, Jamie!!!!
Jalapeno hands can be cured with liberal applications of vinegar (or lemon juice, but stickier), as can ordinary kitchen burns.
I made this last night and it was a hit. I substituted orange juice for the lemon (because that is what I had on hand). Delicious!!!
How far in advance do you think you could make the cranberry salsa?
has anyone tried this on warmed Brie? I bet it would be fantastic!
Alyson Paige,
I think you would be fine making it 24 hours in advance. Good luck! Hope you love it!
~Jamie
This sounds similar to something my mom calls Jezebel sauce and serves over cream cheese at Christmas. I'm adding this to my Thanksgiving menu this week. Thanks for sharing.
Made this yesterday and blogged about it today http://recipeswelove1.blogspot.com/2011/11/cranberry-cream-cheese-dip.html
This looks like it will make the perfect Thanksgiving appetizer! What are your thoughts on incorporating orange zest? Tis the season for cranberry and orange in my household. 🙂
Hey Jenna,
This Cranberry Dip is super flavor backed, I think the orange zest might tip it over the edge. However, I've had a reader swap out the lemon juice for orange juice and said it was fantastic. So, I would go that route if I were you. I agree…cranberry and orange are heavenly together. I've been working on a little cookie recipe to include both. Have a great day!
~Jamie
I've read through the comments, and have made mine (more than) 24 hours in advance. I have to say, it is delicious!!! Even without the cream cheese. I love it! We're going to be traveling (like 9 hours away) and won't be eating it for two more days. Would you suggest freezing my cranberry mixture? Would that ruin the flavor of the fresh cilantro/jalapeno? It would sure make it easier for traveling! Thanks for sharing this recipe. So perfect!
Heya i am for the first time here. I found this board and I find It really ufeusl & it helped me out much. I hope to give something back and aid others like you aided me.
Hi Tina,
Thanks for the tip about making it more than 24 hours in advance. As for your question I think you would be ok. The texture might be a little bit strange once the jalapeno and cilantro have been frozen, but I think the taste would be great. Good luck! Let me know if you try it. Have a great Thanksgiving!
~Jamie
how many cups of fresh cranberries would equal 12oz?
Mandy, I just made this and it's about 1.5 – 2 cups.
I'm in the process of making this right now. I couldn't get myself to add all that sugar either! I went with about 1/4 Cup.
When i first saw this I was imagining it being more savory than sweet anyway, so I think it's still gonna be awesome!
Just made this for Thanksgiving with family. Looking forward to sharing it. Thank you.
Found this on Pinterest and just made it for Thanksgiving. It is DELICIOUS! I only added 3/4 cup of sugar. Soooo good with Wheat Thins!
Made this tonight for Thanksgiving tomorrow. It hasn't even had the chance to sit and is not over the cream cheese and it is already amazing! This seriously might be gone before our party starts! Thanks for sharing!!
Yummy recipe! I forgot to grab a jalepeno at the store this week, so I sprinkled in some ground chipotle chile for a bite. It's very good, in case someone needs a substitute. Happy Thanksgiving!
Thank you so much for posting this recipe!
I made this yesterday for Thanksgiving, and everyone just raved about how delicious it was, and how beautiful and festive looking it was too.
I must say, i never thought the flavors would work in the manner in which they did–so bravo!
I will be making this again this weekend for a 2nd Thanksgiving with friends. I hope they appreciate it as much as my family did .
And PS. so easy and fun to make. such vibrant colors, and incredibly tasty! thanks again!
I made this for a dip to take to my daughter's mother-in-laws for Thanksgiving. It was a big hit and everyone loved it. It has a very nice sweet and a bite of hot flavor. I will make this again and again. Thank you.
Hi Jamie- I've made this twice in the past few days and while it is absolutely delicious it gets really juicy and when i scoop some all of the juice fills where i just took some of the dip from. Do you have any idea why this is?
I made this dip for Thanksgiving the other day. I had a lot of compliments. Thanks for posting it. I love your page and look forward to all of your recipes! Thank You again!!
Dawn
I made this for Thanksgiving and it was a HUGE hit. So tasty! You did lose some of that bite from the jalapeno if you let if marinate together overnight, but it was still very good. I may use two jalapeno's next time … having that extra kick right after it was all blended together was very tasty! [Also, I just threw everything in the food processor together at once, and it turned out great. I just put the sugar after I emptied it all into a bowl]
Made this for the fam on Thanksgiving! Everyone ate it up within minutes, LITERALLY! However, I did 1/2 creme cheese and 1/2 sour cream, and only 3/4 cups of sugar to make it more tart. Turned out splendid! Thanks for this recipie!
This was served at Friend's TG dinner and we scarfed it up. Can't wait to make it myself. What a fabulous recipe!
Heya i’m for the primary time here. I found this board and I to find It rllaey helpful & it helped me out a lot. I’m hoping to offer something back and help others like you helped me.
I made this for Thanksgiving appetizers and it was the biggest hit and has been requested for our holiday party this weekend! THANK YOU!
Hahahaha!! I can attest to the reaction at Jill's house. I am responsible for scarfing at least half of it!
This is amazing! I did use lime instead of lemon, but everything else the same. I think it should sit longer than four hours, over night would be best as it gives the flavors more time to blend together. LOVE IT!
I couldn't find fresh cranberries anywhere at the grocery store, but I was able to find the dried ones. So I soaked the dred cranberries in lukewarm water for 20 minutes, drained them very well, reduced the sugar to a 1/2 cup (I like tart) and followed your directions from there. It was awesome. My family gives this a double thumbs up!
“palate” not “pallet.”. A food writer should first be a writer.