Scarborough Fair Cranberry Sauce: A Musical Take on a Classic

Cranberry Sauce! Love it or hate it, this, usually sweet and tangy condiment is a staple of the Thanksgiving table, usually out of a can. Over the years, I’ve been having fun making it from scratch, and playing with the ingredients. Most of them have been in the “Sweet & tart” category of the mainstay, but this one I took a different approach, I went for a more savory take.

The roots of this variation of cranberry sauce lay in my Thanksgiving turkey. Typically, I would use herbed butter under the skin of my bird, but one year, I decided to try adding fresh cranberries to the butter, and the end results were so good that it became the main way I did it. Then one year, while making my cranberry sauce of the year, I had the idea to make a herbed sauce. The Better Than Boulion company had started making a Roasted Garlic base and I decided to try using it as the liquid base for the sauce. My herb blend was a traditional sage, rosemary, and thyme mix, so I added parsley in, just so I could justify the name. It came out amazing, and it mixed into the butter much better than the way I had been making it.

Now, every Thanksgiving, I have to buy double the cranberries because we use it for more than just the butter, it’s a table staple like the more traditional.

Scarborough Fair Cranberry Sauce

Michael Halbrook

This recipe for a savory sauce is inspired by an old English folk song that was popularized by Simon & Garfunkel. The sauce is versatile and can be used in a variety of ways, such as a glaze for your turkey, mixed with butter for the turkey, or just served as an alternative to the sweet stuff. While the recipe calls for parsley, it isn’t necessary and doesn’t add much to the flavor profile. However, it is included in the recipe for the name to work right.

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Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 20 minutes mins

Total Time 30 minutes mins

Course Side Dish

Cuisine American

Servings 16 oz

Calories 30 kcal

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• 12 oz fresh cranberries
• .5 tablespoon fresh parsley minced
• .5 tablespoon fresh sage minced
• .5 tablespoon fresh rosemary minced
• .5 tablespoon fresh thyme minced
• 1 tsp Superior Touch Better Than Bouillon: Roasted Garlic Base
• 1 cup water
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar

Instructions

 

• Combine garlic base and water, or use your favorite chicken or turkey broth
  1 tsp Superior Touch Better Than Bouillon: Roasted Garlic Base, 1 cup water
• Add broth, cranberries and herbs to a medium sauce pot and bring to a boil.
  12 oz fresh cranberries, .5 tablespoon fresh parsley minced, .5 tablespoon fresh sage minced, .5 tablespoon fresh rosemary minced, .5 tablespoon fresh thyme minced
• Once boiling, reduce to a simmer and let simmer until the berries have popped and the sauce starts to thicken.
• Off heat, stir in honey and balsamic vinegar.
  1 tablespoon honey, 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar

Notes

You can use your favorite broth or make your own in place of the garlic base and water.

Nutrition

Serving: 1gCalories: 30kcalCarbohydrates: 8gSodium: 3mgFiber: 2gSugar: 4g

Keyword glaze, holiday, Thanksgiving, Turkey

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