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I've got a grandmother who hates cranberries.

Not me, though, I love them. I like them with my turkey at Thanksgiving, but I also like them in all kinds of baked treats and in other dishes. And I like them all year round, because in my mind cranberries should definitely not be confined to the Thanksgiving table.

Cranberries are another one of those things that are so good for you. One cup of cranberries only has 44 calories, but has 4 grams of fiber and is loaded with vitamin C and manganese.

As you go about your cooking this fall, give these cranberry recipes a chance. And send me an e-mail at sbsarino@gmail.com letting me know how you like to incorporate cranberries into your cooking.

Cranberry-almond coffee cake

Adapted from a King Arthur Flour recipe

1/2 c. (1 stick) butter

1 c. granulated sugar

2 large eggs

1 c. buttermilk or yogurt (low-fat is fine)

1 tsp. almond extract

1 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. baking soda

2 c. all-purpose flour (or one cup each all-purpose and whole wheat flour)

1/2 tsp. salt

1 c. whole berry cranberry sauce

1/2 c. blanched slivered or sliced almonds, toasted

Glaze

3/4 c. confectioners' sugar

2 Tbsp. milk

1/2 tsp. almond extract

Preheat the oven to 350 degree. Grease a 10-cup tube pan or Bundt-style pan.

In a large bowl, beat the butter and sugar till smooth. Beat in the eggs, then the buttermilk or yogurt and almond extract. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl, and beat briefly again, to make sure everything is well combined. Add the baking powder, baking soda, flour and salt, stirring just to blend. Grease and flour a tube pan. Spoon half of batter into pan. Spread half of cranberry sauce evenly atop batter, then spread remaining batter over that. Top with remaining cranberry sauce, and sprinkle toasted almonds evenly over sauce.

Bake the cake for 55 minutes, tenting it with foil for the final 15 minutes. When it's done, a cake tester inserted into the thickest part will come out clean, and the top will spring back when you press it gently. Remove the cake from the oven, and cool it in the pan for 5 minutes. After 5 minutes, turn it out of the pan onto a rack set over a piece of parchment, and stir together the glaze ingredients.

Drizzle the thin glaze over the warm cake. Let the cake cool completely before serving.

Apple cranberry stuffed pork roast

Filling

1 c. apple cider

1/2 c. cider vinegar

3/4 c. packed light brown sugar

1 large shallot, peeled, thinly sliced

2 Granny Smith apples, peeled and chopped

1/2 c. dried cranberries

1 Tbsp. grated fresh ginger

1 Tbsp. yellow mustard seeds

1/2 tsp. ground allspice

Pork Roast

2 1/2 pound boneless center-cut pork loin roast

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Before starting on the pork, put the pork roast in the freezer for 30 minutes to make it easier to cut. While the pork is chilling, you can make the filling.

Bring all the filling ingredients to simmer in medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Cover, reduce heat to low, and cook until apples are very soft, about 20 minutes. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve, reserving the liquid. Use a rubber spatula to press against the apple mixture in the sieve to extract as much liquid out as possible. Return liquid to saucepan and simmer over medium-high heat until reduced to 1/2 cup, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat, set aside and reserve this liquid for use as a glaze. Pulse apple mixture in food processor, about 15 1-second pulses. Set aside.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lay the roast down, fat side up. Insert the knife into the roast 1/2-inch horizontally from the bottom of the roast, along the long side of the roast. Make a long cut along the bottom of the roast, stopping 1/2 inch before the edge of the roast.

Open up the roast and continue to cut through the thicker half of the roast, again keeping 1/2 inch from the bottom. Repeat until the roast is an even 1/2-inch thickness all over when laid out.

If necessary, pound the roast to an even thickness with a meat pounder.

Season the inside of the roast well with salt and pepper. Spread out the filling on the roast, leaving a 1/2-inch border from the edges. Starting with the short side of the roast, roll it up very tightly. Secure with kitchen twine at 1-inch intervals. Season the outside of the roast generously with salt and pepper.

Place roast on a rack in a roasting pan, place in oven, on the middle rack.

Cook for 45 to 60 minutes, until the internal temperature of the roast is 130 to 135 degrees. Brush with half of the glaze and cook for 5 minutes longer. Remove the roast from the oven or grill. Place it on a cutting board. Tent it with foil to rest and keep warm for 15 minutes before slicing.

Slice into 1/2-inch wide pieces, removing the cooking twine as you cut the roast. Serve with remaining glaze.

What do you have going on in your kitchen this fall? Send Shannon Baylis Sarino an e-mail at sbsarino@gmail.com and we'll feature your cooking adventures in an upcoming food column.


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