Cranberry, Pear & Rose Hip Sauce

Pot od cranberry sauce styled with fresh cranberries and wooden spoons

Does the season find you looking for comforting food full of spicy, cozy nourishment? Fresh cranberries, pears and rose hips plus a warming dose of ginger makes for an absolute treat for your immune system. Whether you eat this straight out of the jar or add it to grilled meat, oatmeal, or place a dollop on top of yogurt, is entirely up to you. This versatile, simple recipe is loaded with flavor, Vitamin C, antioxidants and is naturally sweetened by honey. Perfect to enjoy on a cold winter’s day!*

TO GATHER

3 cups chopped pears
2 cups fresh cranberries
1 tbsp. lemon juice
1 tsp. lemon or orange zest, optional
1/3 cup of dried rose hips or 1 cup freshly foraged rose hips (see note below)
1 tbsp. apple cider vinegar
1 1/4 cup water
1 tbsp. freshly chopped ginger or 1 tsp. ground ginger
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1/4 tsp. cardamom
Honey to taste

INSTRUCTIONS

To begin, place all fruits, lemon juice, zest, apple cider vinegar and water into a pan and bring to a boil.
Reduce heat to low and simmer for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Add the spices and honey, stirring for two more minutes.
Enjoy immediately or let the compote rest for a day to allow flavors to mingle!

Harvesting Rose Hips

Rose hips are the edible seed pods that fruit after a rose has bloomed. Typically, they are red or orange in color and ripen toward the end of summer, into autumn and some even make it to winter like the ones we just harvested last week! Although they are on their way out, if you can find any ripe, rose hip fruit that has not turned mushy, you can pluck (carefully) and take them home to process. Roses are resilient, nurturing plants and we are so grateful for their medicine in this season. Chock-full of vitamin C and antioxidants, you can use the fruit to make rose hip tea, chutney, jam, jelly or a tangy, nutritious sauce like the recipe above.

You can use whole, fresh rose hips, but the seeds can be bothersome, so we suggest you remove the seeds prior to eating. After rinsing, cut the hips in half and manually scoop out the seeds or pop them out with a small paring knife. If you are making jelly or a tea, you do not need to remove the seeds. Happy harvesting!