Grandma's Famous Cranberry Salad Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What is cranberry salad made of? ›

Dried cherries and raisins are the most common substitutes for dried cranberries. They offer a similar chewy texture, making them suitable for baked goods and salads where a bit of chewiness is desirable.

Cranberry sauce has become a staple at the Christmas dinner table, but more than that it's a great addition to the kind of festive sandwiches, pies and other eat-to-go items that feature on many a Caterer's December menu.

Cranberries provide a good source of various vitamins and antioxidants. Historically, Native Americans used cranberries as a treatment for bladder and kidney diseases, while early settlers from England used them to treat poor appetite, stomach complaints, blood disorders, and scurvy.

Ambrosia Fruit Salad

The best Ambrosia Salad recipe is made with pineapple, mandarin oranges, yogurt, mini marshmallows, coconut and whipped cream. This easy side dish has a delicious tropical sweetness and is always a crowd favorite!

Raw cranberries (fresh or frozen) are high in nutritional value and fiber while being low in carbohydrates and calories. Dried cranberries (often known as "Craisins," a brand name), however, can be quite different. Since cranberries are so tart, most dried versions have added sugar.

Another main difference between the two, pointed out by the website, is that Craisins have added sugar, while raisins are “naturally sweet.” NuVal ranks raisins an 87 on its nutrition rating scale, out of 100 points, and rates Craisins a 4.

That's because, says Kriebel, Craisins are actually dried cranberries with sugar added to make them sweet. Raisins are just dried grapes, with no added sweeteners.

The major variation you're likely to come across is "whole berry" versus "jellied." The only difference between them is that the jellied sauce is cooked until the berries have completely broken down. They both slide out of the can as a wobbly red cylinder.

Cranberry sauce is often eaten in conjunction with turkey for Christmas in the United Kingdom and Canada or Thanksgiving in the United States and Canada, and it is only rarely eaten or served in other contexts there.

Why do people eat cranberry sauce at Thanksgiving? ›

For instance, cranberries were mixed with meat and fat as a way to help extend the shelf life of the meat. The indigenous people then introduced the cranberry to the English pilgrims when they arrived in North America. According to Wick, they helped the pilgrims understand what cranberries were and how to use them.

Both types of cranberries, the large and small, contain many phenolic compounds, such as phenolic acids, flavonoids (anthocyanins and flavonols), and tannins. The large cranberry has been recognized as an important food and healing agent because of these compounds.

Cranberries are primarily composed of carbs and fiber ( 1 ). These are mainly simple sugars, such as sucrose, glucose, and fructose ( 2 ). The rest is made up of insoluble fiber — such as pectin, cellulose, and hemicellulose — which pass through your gut almost intact. Cranberries also contain soluble fiber.

Cranberries are a native North American fruit and a Thanksgiving staple for many families. Cranberries are potent sources of antioxidants, specifically from a subclass of flavonoids called proanthocyanidins, which are unique to and abundant in cranberries.

You can add them to smoothies or salads, or eat them whole. Eating raw cranberries is safe and easy, though their sharp, bitter flavor isn't for everyone. Be sure to clean and sort them thoroughly.