Holiday Cranberry Compote
2 Cups Sweet Port Wine
Zest of 1 Orange
20 Whole Cloves
3 or 4 Whole Cinnamon Sticks
Combine in a 2 quart sauce pan, and simmer on low heat for one hour.
Remove the zest and cloves from the port wine. To the wine, add the following ingredients, keeping the heat on and stirring until the sugars are dissolved,
1 cup Fresh Squeezed Orange Juice
1/2 Cup Three Rivers Farm Bourbon Maple Syrup (Cranberry Maple Syrup is also delicious in this recipe)
1/2 cup cranberry or orange infused honey
Vanilla or almond extract
1/4 tsp Cinnamon
Add 6oz of fresh Cranberries to the mixture and let them cook until they are just starting to pop. Then add 6oz more until you've added a total of 24oz of cranberries. This creates and inconsistent texture to the sauce, rather than all smooth which is what happens when you cook the berries to completion all at once. Cooking in batches makes it chunky- almost like salsa. You can leave the cinnamon sticks to continue to infuse their flavor as the mixture cools.
Option: Add 8z of fresh blueberries near the end. It adds a nice blend and flavor. You can finely chop the orange zest or add new if you like.
Serve the compote with pork loin, pork chops, or any poultry. It freezes well and keeps for over a week fresh in the fridge.
