Arils | I Can Cook That

My house is filled with pomegranates and pomegranate arils. Being a food blogger is tough 🙂

Thanksgiving is tomorrow, so I wanted to share a recipe for one of my favorite Thanksgiving dishes: cranberry sauce!

This recipe uses pomegranates two ways: in a pomegranate molasses and as whole arils, or seeds. Pomegranate molasses can be found in well-stocked grocery stores or Middle Eastern food stores. But I also show you how to make it below if you so wish.

Ingredients:

Cranberry Sauce:

1 bag (16 oz.) cranberries, thawed if frozen
2/3 cup packed dark brown sugar (or light brown sugar to make less sweet)
4 tablespoons pomegranate molasses (recipe below)
3 sprigs fresh thyme
2 containers POM POMS Fresh Arils (about ~1.5 cups)
the juice and zest of 1/2 lemon

Pomegranate Molasses:

2 cups pomegranate juice
1/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons lemon juice

Continue reading Cranberry Pomegranate Sauce

I love love love pomegranates. The burst of tanginess is awesome in both sweet and savory dishes.

It is once again pomegranate season (the season runs from ~October through ~January), so I am thrilled to be cooking again with one of my favorite ingredients.

POM Wonderful must have heard about my love of their products, because I was contacted to try out their POM POMS Fresh Arils and pomegranates. I will have a few recipes over the coming weeks, but lets start with something a little sweet.

This recipe for Pomegranate Olive Oil Cake is from the POM Wonderful website. It is topped with a Vanilla Crème Anglaise, a drizzle of olive oil, and some fresh pomegranate arils.

Ingredients:

Olive Oil Cake

¾ cup POM POMS Fresh Arils
2 cups all-purpose flour + 1-2 teaspoons flour, separated
2 teaspoons baking powder
4 whole eggs, at room temperature
1 cup + 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
the juice and zest of 1 lemon
½ teaspoon kosher salt
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
¾ cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons turbinado sugar

Vanilla Crème Anglaise

15 egg yolks
1 quart whole milk
1 quart heavy cream
3 teaspoons vanilla extract
1½ cups sugar

Garnish

¼ cup POM POMS Fresh Arils
1 ½ tablespoons fine quality extra-virgin olive oil

Continue reading Pomegranate Olive Oil Cake