I still have to tell you about the super-quick-and-tasty cranberry marmalade sauce I made last week, but first: cranapple chutney. Oh so good. Easy. Quick, as chutneys go, with all that pectin from apples & cranberries setting up the preserve in no time. Nicely spicy but not killer hot. Tangy, oniony, gingery: hits every note. Tai ate nearly an entire jar for dinner last night, with a bag of tortilla chips. That good.
Toss all the ingredients together, simmer for a half an hour, and pop it on your Thanksgiving table. Just don’t blame me if everyone ignores the turkey.
Gobble gobble!
Adapted from Cranberry Chutney in The Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving, J. Kingry and L. Devine
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Cranapple Chutney
INGREDIENTS
- 2 cups cranberries, fresh or frozen
- 2 medium apples, peeled, cored & diced to 1/2 inch (about 2 cups)
- 1 and 1/2 cups red onion, finely chopped
- 1 cup white wine vinegar
- 1 cup orange juice
- 1 cup raw sugar (organic turbinado)
- 2 tbsp fresh ginger, peeled & minced
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tbsp mustard seed
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 1 tsp red chile flakes
- 1/2 tsp ground cloves
- 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1/2 tsp salt
METHODS
- Prepare canner, jars and lids.
- Combine all ingredients in a medium (5-quart) stock pot or Dutch oven. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat; reduce heat to low and simmer, stirring occasionally, until thickened, about 30 minutes. Taste and adjust seasonings. Remove cinnamon stick.
- Ladle hot chutney into hot jars to 1/2-inch headspace. Remove air bubbles, wipe rims, affix lids and process in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes.
Yields about 5 cups.
OPTIONS
- Pears might be a nice substitute for apples, or you could skip them altogther and use another 2 cups of cranberries.
- If you’re out of fresh ginger (I nearly always am) add in about 1/2 cup chopped, crystallized ginger. You may want to reduce the sugar a bit.
- For a spicier chutney, swap out a bit of the chopped onion for some minced hot chile pepper. Just make sure that the total volume of onion + pepper does not exceed 1 and 1/2 cups.
STORE
Canned, store in a cool, dark spot for up to 1 year. Refrigeated, chutney will last at least 1 month.
SEASON
Falll through Winter. Year round with frozen cranberries.
localkitchenblog.com 
This sounds amazing. I have used sweet mango chutney as a glaze for my grilled pork-chop. I wonder if this will hold up to the pork. I will have to try it.
This sounds absolutely fantastic! I’m going to have to try it…
This chutney looks so great! I’m hoping to make it this weekend but was wondering, do you use brown or yellow mustard seed for the recipe (or ground mustard seed)? Thank you!
Hi Taryn,
I used yelllow mustard seed, mostly because it looks prettiest against the cranberry color. Brown mustard seed would work as well. I wouldn’t recommend ground mustard, as too many ground spices can make a chutney look a bit muddy; you can always omit the mustard seed if you can’t find a good source.
Kaela
Kaela,
Thank you so much! I thought I only had brown mustard seed in the house (from making your winter lager mustard!) but found a little bag of yellow at the last minute. The chutney is simmering on the stove right now, smelling delicious.
Also, I’ve been a long time reader of your blog but never commented until now. Your recipes rock!
Taryn
This is delicious. My husband , who does not care for cranberry sauces as a rule loves this. Thanks!
made this- a version of it- and loving it! I used extra apples and I want to try it with even more apples (since that’s what I’m trying to use up) thanks!