Honestly, I didn’t measure anything very carefully, but just tasted it and added things until I liked the flavor. But, it turned out so well, I at least wanted to have a record for next year of what I put in. I think this kind of thing is best made tasting as you go anyway, since what it needs will depend on the flavor and sweetness of your cranberries.

Cranberry Sauce

This is a rough outline of a recipe. These are the ingredients I use, but the amounts will need to be tweaked, depending on your taste and the tartness of the cranberries. I think I ended up with more spices than this, but this is a place to start – it’s easier to add more than to take some away!

Makes about a pint

3/4 of a bag of cranberries (3-4 cups)
1/4 c of brown sugar, plus more to taste
zest of one orange
1 T grated ginger
1/4 t cloves
1/2 t cinnamon
1/4 t allspice
1/4 t fresh grated nutmeg

Combine cranberries, brown sugar, and a couple tablespoons of water. Cook over medium heat. Once it starts bubbling and the cranberries break down, turn down to a simmer and add the orange zest and spices. Simmer until the cranberries are cooked down and falling apart, tasting to adjust the sugar and spices.

Let’s just ignore the fact that I haven’t put anything up here in over a month and just move on with our lives, shall we? I know it’s getting late to share this with you, but maybe you can still find a few end of the season stone fruits left at your market? If not, I could imagine trying a similar concept with some upcoming fall fruit, like maybe pears, or persimmons.

I got the idea of adding creme fraiche to a pie from Smitten Kitchen, who in turn got it from Martha Stewart. I really liked the way it thickened things up and made them a bit richer and tangier, and a little less sweet. I used nectarines and blueberries, since that’s what we had on hand, and it was a lovely combination, but there are many other combinations you could try that might be more seasonally appropriate. I’m just now thinking maybe pears and cranberries might be good, when the cranberries start popping up before too much longer. Is it really fall already?!

Nectarine Blueberry Pie
adapted from the Smitten Kitchen

One pie crust (I cheated and used store-bought)

For filling:
4 nectarines, cut into wedges
1/2 cup of blueberries
2 T sugar (or to taste)
1 t lemon zest
pinch of cardamom
1/2 c creme fraiche

For streusel:
1/4 c powdered sugar
1/4 t baking powder
1/4 c finely chopped pecans
3 T flour
1/2 stick cold salted butter (or unsalted plus a pinch of salt)

Preheat oven to 375 F. Sprinkle the nectarine slices and blueberries with sugar, lemon zest, and cardamom and let macerate while you prepare the rest of the pie.

Roll out crust and place it in a pie pan. Combine the ingredients for the streusel except the butter, and then cut in the butter. Spread half of the creme fraiche on the bottom of the pie pan and sprinkle half the streusel on top. Arrange nectarine slices and blueberries over the top. Dollop with the rest of the creme fraiche, and sprinkle the rest of the streusel over the top.

Bake at 375 F for about an hour, until the filling is bubbly and the crust and streusel are golden. Let cool a bit before serving. With the creme fraiche, I really didn’t think it needed ice cream or whipped cream or anything, though I guess that never hurts.

One of Matt’s favorite desserts is lemon squares, but when I made them this time, I decided to change it up and use lime juice instead.  I also added some ginger, again going for that ginger-lime combination I use for sherbet a few weeks ago.  This time, I again didn’t add enough ginger though, so if you want that to come through, add more!  Fresh ginger in the filling might help, too.

Everyone enjoyed the flavor of these with lime instead of lemon.  In fact I think I might like them even better than the original!  The extra tang from the lime just seems particularly summery.

Lime Squares

If you’d rather have more classic lemon bars, just use lemon juice instead of lime juice, and leave out the ginger.

For the crust:
2 sticks salted butter (or, use unsalted and add a pinch of salt to the dry ingredients, below)
2 c flour
1/4 c ultra fine sugar
1/2 t ground ginger

For the filling:
4 eggs
1/2 c fresh lime juice (about 3 limes)
1 T flour
1/2 t baking powder
2 c sugar
1 t ground ginger

powdered sugar for topping

Preheat oven to 325 F. In a 13″ x 9″ pyrex dish, melt the butter. Stir in flour, ultrafine sugar, and 1/2 t ginger. Press into the bottom of the pan. Bake 325 F for fifteen minutes.

Meanwhile, beat the eggs until frothy, and then add the juice. Beat in the flour, baking powder, and sugar, until the sugar is dissolved.

Pour over the crust, and bake at 325 F for 40-50 minutes, until set and barely coloring. Sift powdered sugar over the top while they’re still warm. Once cool, cut into squares.