Winter Bizarre

If September = Apples and October = Pumpkins
Then November = Cranberries!

That’s my kind of equation!

I Love Cranberries! And here are a few reasons why.


1. Andy’s friend Jeff has a cranberry farm in Banden, Oregon, and we’ve gotta support the farmers! Plus I love the Ocean Spray commercials. Go here to see their funny Thanksgiving video, and download their free recipe e-book, too. The farmers totally remind me of Jeff! Andy was up there for the harvest a few years ago and his whole body was sore from wading through the bogs. I really would like to see the farm someday, before Jeff goes on to something new.


2. My FavorITEST EverEVER EVERRRRR sandwich was the “Plymouth Rock” made by the lovely deli employees at my local Safeway grocery store. Every other week I would do my grocery run and stop by the deli to order my Plymouth Rock, and only a Plymouth Rock would do. The #10 sandwich on the board. Only made on the Multigrain roll. With the real, thickly sliced roasted turkey breast, mayo, jellied cranberry sauce, some thick slices of Havarti cheese {until then I didn’t even know that I liked Havarti} and green leaf lettuce. Heaven in a sandwich. Fast forward a few years where I now live in the middle of nowhere Missouri with no Safeway within a few states of here. You and I can {more like have to} make a reasonable facsimile of this sandwich, just use your favorite roll, and pile it up nice and thick with the rest of the ingredients. If you like cranberry sauce, I promise you won’t be sorry.


3. They’re RED! What more can I say?


4. Cranberry cookies. {They’re really bars, but who cares?} This recipe is from my mom, and made it into our family cookbook. I bake these every year at Christmas time and always get requests for the recipes. We moved to Missouri in November, and when the girls in Andy’s office found out we were moving, they mourned the loss of him bringing in plates full of these babies. Yum!


Cranberry Cookies
¾ cup shortening
1 cup butter
2 cups sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 ½ cups flour
½ teaspoon baking powder
2 cups fresh cranberries
1 cup butterscotch chips
½ cup chopped nuts
Cream shortening, butter, sugar, eggs and vanilla. Mix in flour, salt and baking powder and blend. Fold in cranberries {just toss them in whole} and nuts. Spread evenly on a jelly-roll style cookie sheet. Sprinkle butterscotch chips on top. Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes.


Go see what all the other Winter Bizarre-ies are doing at Scribbet's blog!