When cranberries come to mind, most people think of a Thanksgiving dinner table with all the lush fixings. But even though this healthy, antioxidant rich super fruit is harvested in the fall, it’s the perfect ingredient to take your summer entertaining to the next level.
Cranberries are extremely versatile and are the perfect addition to sweet or savory summer recipes including cocktails, smoothies, salads, desserts and this…..Does that pork chop right there make you want to lick your screen? I thought so! This cranberry horseradish sauce only has 4 ingredients, but the layers of flavor are so nuanced and balanced, you’d think it was super complicated.
One of the things I love about cranberries is that they come in so many forms (fresh, frozen, canned, sauced, dried, etc…) that you can get really creative. This recipe uses the jellied cranberry sauce variety and when you warm it up on the stove, it melts down into a beautiful “saucy” consistency. Adding the savory balsamic marinated pork chop and you’ve got a winner-winner cranberry pork dinner! This cranberry horseradish sauce would also work beautifully on a pork tenderloin.
- 1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
- 1/3 cup olive oil
- 2 garlic cloves smashed
- 2 Tb honey
- 2 thick center cut pork chops
- 1 Tb olive oil and 1 Tb butter (to saute pork chops)
- kosher salt
- 1 can jellied cranberry sauce
- 2 Tb fresh garlic chopped
- 1 Tb olive oil
- 2 Tb horseradish
- 1-2 Tb brown sugar (depending on how much sweet you want to add)
- fresh thyme for garnish
- Preheat oven to 375.
- Combine marinade ingredients well and marinate pork chops for 30 minutes.
- After 30 minutes take pork chops out of marinade and dry off on both sides with paper towel.
- Sprinkle chops with kosher salt.
- Heat up the 1 Tb olive oil and 1 Tb butter on a cast iron skillet or heavy duty non-stick skillet on medium heat.
- When butter is bubbling, add chops to skillet and cook for about 5 minutes on each side, being careful not to move chops around. Let them sit in place in pan to caramelize.
- Put chops in preheated oven for 10-12 minutes until cooked through.
- Let chops sit out while you make the sauce.
- Saute garlic until fragrant, about 3 minutes in a medium sauce pan.
- Add jellied cranberry and stir on medium heat until it melts down to a sauce-like consistency.
- Add horseradish and sugar and stir to combine.
- Pour sauce over pork chops when serving and garnish with fresh thyme
- You can use a pork tenderloin or pork roast with this sauce and it works beautifully.
Speaking of healthy, a friend of mine recently introduced me to green mangos which are basically unripe mangos. If you shave them with a peeler, they are a scrumptious not-too-sweet but perfectly tangy base to a salad. I added dried cranberries, almonds and avocado to this salad and fresh Maine lobster with a sweet buttermilk dressing that is creamy and refreshing. The cranberries give the salad a gorgeous pop of color and flavor, while the almonds lend the perfect textured crunch in every bite. And well, lobster is pretty much my favorite kind of seafood, so it adds a decadence all on its own!
- 1 pound fresh Maine Lobster
- 1 green mango shaved with a vegetable peeler
- 1 cup dried cranberries
- 1/4 cup almond slices
- 1 ripe avocado diced
- chives for garnish
- 1/2 cup buttermilk
- 2 Tb sour cream
- 1/8 cup sugar
- 1 Tb fresh lemon juice
- pinch of kosher salt
- sprinkle of black pepper
- 2 Tb fresh chopped chives
- Top shaved green mango with fresh lobster, avocado, dried cranberries and almonds.
- Whisk dressing ingredients together and fold onto salad.
80% of the U.S. population enjoy cranberries, according to a new survey commissioned by the Cranberry Marketing Committee. It turns out, eating cranberries—which ranked in the top three most popular berries—might have more benefits than many may realize. The nationwide survey found that in general, more cranberry eaters than non-cranberry eaters say they work out and are health-conscious, and are more likely to describe themselves as positive, and feel less stressed and more adventurous. So, make this delish cranberry studded dinner and then plan your next adventure!
Check out some of my other cranberry recipes here:
No Bake Cranberry Grand Marnier Cheesecake (Low-carb)
You can also check out uscranberries.com for recipes.
*This post was sponsored by the Cranberry Marketing Committee but all opinions are my own.
