What Are You Thankful for?

As we express our gratitude, we must never forget 

that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them.

by John Fitzgerald Kennedy

You never know what new thing you might find at a local coffee shop. What a clever and eye catching idea encouraging patrons to write on the chalkboard what they are thankful for this season. I am sure those two turkeys from Wilmar, MN recently pardoned by President Obama feel mighty thankful.

The following recipe is a sweet but tart sauce to serve over pork tenderloin, chicken and turkey

Cranberry-Dried Cherry Sauce

Ingredients;

1-     12 oz. frozen container of cranberry/raspberry juice thawed

• 1-cup water
• 1-cup brown sugar
• 2 cinnamon sticks broken in half
• ¼ tsp allspice
• 2TB. cornstarch
• 1 package of dried tart cherries (I used a product called Good Sense)
• 1-12 oz. bag fresh cranberries (in produce dept.)
• ¼ cup Merlot

Directions:

• Mix first 5 ingredients-reserve 1/3 cup of the liquid and set aside
• Bring cranberry/raspberry mixture to a boil over medium heat uncovered, stirring till sugar dissolves
• Mix cornstarch with reserve 1/3 cup of juice and add to cranberry/raspberry mixture 
• Add cherries and cook over medium low heat for 2 minutes, mixture will thicken
• Add cranberries and cook uncovered till berries all pop about 7 minutes on medium low heat
• Transfer to a bowl and stir in Merlot or any other dry red wine like Cabernet
• Cool then cover and chill overnight, mixture will thicken more after being refrigerated
• Remove cinnamon sticks before serving