Tag: Port

Cherry Port Cranberry Sauce

I absolutely love cranberry sauce. This not-too-tart and not-too-sweet Thanksgiving staple is always a favorite of mine.

Now I don’t turn my nose up at the canned stuff, but this homemade version for Cherry Port Cranberry Sauce is a really simple alternative. It’s also a bit of a chunky sauce instead of the smooth canned version, so it has a really nice texture to it. Plus, it can be made in 20 minutes!

If you don’t want to use port in the recipe, you can substitute in pomegranate juice.

 

Ingredients:

  • 2 cups fresh cranberries (about 8 ounces)
  • 3/4 cup dried sweetened cherries
  • 3/4 cup port wine
  • 1/3 cup brown sugar
  • 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon orange juice
  • 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

 

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Duck Breasts with Blackberry Port Sauce

I was feeling a little fancy this week so I decided to challenge myself with a protein I rarely use: duck! I’ve actually only worked with duck twice (Duck Breasts with Cider Farro Risotto and Grilled Duck with Warm Mushroom Salad and Truffle Vinaigrette), but I tend to order it at restaurants quite a bit.   I am also on a berry kick at the moment (if you missed it, go check out the Blueberry Coffeecake I posted recently!) so I was really excited to try this Cooking Light recipe for Duck Breasts with Blackberry-Port Sauce.   I served mine with some sauteed green beans but Cooking Light also suggests serving the duck over a bed of lettuce.     Ingredients:

  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 4 (6-ounce) boneless duck breast halves, skinned
  • 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt, divided
  • 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, divided
  • 1 1/2 cups blackberries
  • 1/4 cup finely chopped shallots
  • 1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme
  • 1/2 cup port or other sweet red wine
  • 3/4 cup unsalted chicken stock
  • 1 teaspoon red wine vinegar

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Plum Swirled Cheesecake Bars

This recipe for Plum Swirled Cheesecake Bars is a result of me going a little off the grocery list last time I went food shopping. Have you ever seen an ingredient in the supermarket and decided you just have to make something with it? This happens to me quite a bit.

Unfortunately, I normally do not have a recipe lined up to take advantage of my new purchase. I wanted to take a break from some peach recipes I’ve been making recently (Brown Sugar Cinnamon Peach Pie, Peach Cobbler, and Bourbon-Peach Lemonade to name a few) and focus on a relative of peaches: the plum. I haven’t worked with plums much in the past (I actually only have once recipe: Plum Sweet and Spicy Chicken) but I just could not resist how great they looked!

I decided to take a Martha Stewart recipe for Apricot Cheesecake Bars and instead make my own Plum Compote as a substitute for the Apricots, resulting in these Plum Swirled Cheesecake Bars.

Ingredients:

Plum Compote:

  • ½ cup port wine
  • ½ cup sugar
  • 1 cinnamon stick
  • 1 vanilla bean, cut lengthwise
  • The zest of one orange
  • 6 plums, stones removed and sliced

Cheesecake:

  • 18 graham crackers (I used cinnamon graham crackers)
  • ¾ cup plus 1 tablespoon sugar, divided
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla powder (I used Nielsen Massey)
  • 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
  • 2 packages (8 ounces each) cream cheese, room temperature
  • 1/2 cup sour cream, room temperature
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla bean paste or pure vanilla extract (I used Nielsen Massey)
  • Coarse salt, to taste
  • 2 large eggs, room temperature

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