Cranberry Salsa

Okay, so maybe you are an open-minded foodie and not even phased by the idea of cranberries as salsa. But if someone had come up to me five years ago and been like, "Hey, do you want some cranberry salsa?" I would have looked at them like they had just stepped off of Mars. Fortunately, I tasted this without knowing quite what it was. It was with a plate of crackers at a party. It was pretty. So I ate it. And then I loved it. I bet you do too.

It is punchy-ish, with a bit of sweet-ish. It's served with cream cheese, but good by itself as well. You can eat it with crackers (my favorite) or with chips. It's also pretty awesome on a leftover-turkey sandwich.

This is from the same friend who gave me the recipe for cranberry pomegranate relish. She says she can't even claim this salsa recipe anymore because so many people have asked for the recipe and make it for their own parties.

Cranberry Salsa
prep time: 5-10 minutes
Cost: $2.75
cranberries:  (Aldi prices) 1.00, onion: .15, peppers: .15, sugar: .10, cilantro: .15, ginger: .15, lemon: .05, cream cheese: 1.00

1 bag cranberries, rinsed and drained
1/4 C minced green onions
2 jalepeno peppers, cored, seeded, and minced
1/2 C sugar
1/4 C cilantro leaves, minced
2 Tbsp grated ginger
2 Tbsp lemon juice
1 8-oz package cream cheese (don't mix this in--you serve it with the salsa)

Now you could just throw all this stuff into a food processor and have at it. But I didn't. I worried that by the time I got my onions and peppers small enough to not be offensive to anyone that I might have mushy cranberries. So I gave the onions, peppers, cilantro and ginger a good chop first (it only took a few minutes and gave me some piece of mind). Then I processed the cranberries in the food processor until they were somewhat chopped. Then I added the other ingredients and processed for a few more pulses until the cranberries are finely chopped but not mushy (we're not making jam here, although I'd bet with a little pectin, you probably could--hmmm) and the other stuff is well incorporated.

Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours (You really must do this; it's not NEARLY as good straight off).

Place your cream cheese on a serving platter (I like to smush it up a bit, but you don't have to). Then dump the salsa over it and serve with crackers or chips.

PRINTABLE RECIPE