(Subtitle: Baking a Batch of Cranberry-Apple-Pecan-Chocolate-Chip Bread) ((Sub-Subtitle: Recipe After a Rant))
When I buy a dozen eggs from my farm share, I neither expect to use them all up in a single recipe nor get cranky when I have some left over. Same with a package of bread. Or cheese sticks. Or mushrooms. Or carrots. Or pepperoni. You get the idea.But a bag of cranberries? Something that is such a seasonal item, and comes in 1 size only?
I'm just not jiggy with recipes that call for part of a bag of cranberries. Yes, I know I can freeze cranberries. In fact, I've got a few bags in my fruit & veg freezer right now. Fifty cents a bag at Aldi--couldn't pass it up. They are sitting on top of the bags of blueberries put up during Aldi's 49 cent pint sale in the summer. But this blog is not about Aldi deals, it's about using what you've got. All of it.
plenty of things to do with dribs and drabs, but it's not the point. (Notable exception: I'm happy to open up a can of tomato paste to use in a recipe that only needs 1 Tablespoon. I happily freeze the remaining contents in 1 Tablespoon mounds on parchment squares, transfer them to a zip top freezer bag, and next time I need a small amount I am set.)
When I open up a bag of cranberries, I want to use the whole thing all at once. When I make my Apple/Apricot/Beet/Cranberry sauce, I do. You probably do when you make your own version of cranberry sauce, right? So why does the bread recipe on the bag of Ocean Spray cranberries, the bag that contains 2+ cups of whole cranberries, call for a mere 1 1/2 cups?
Today, I needed to make a loaf of quick bread for a school function. I wanted something that would appeal to kids while using up a whole bag of cranberries in the process. I looked in the crisper and saw some lonely apples, looked in the freezer and saw an open bag of pecan parts, grabbed the chips and got to work. Come join me!