Kitchen Magic: Cranberry Juice into Spiced Cranberry Syrup

Now that Turkey Day is over, I'm guessing that there is more than one household stuck with a jug of cranberry juice. We always get some of the all-juice, no sugar added variety at our local Wegman's since we nearly always have at least one guest over the weekend that prefers a natural non-alcohol beverage. Not being juice drinkers, (too many calories, too easy to swill down), usually most of the jug gets poured down the drain after opening and sitting in the fridge for a week with just one glass missing.

This year is different.  I really hate to waste food, but there is no way we were going to drink all that cranberry juice. That big container takes up a lot of room, and I actually thought about pouring it into smaller containers and freezing it. But that would take-up valuable real estate in my freezer. Since I always reduce chicken and beef stock to save room...you can always add water back in... I figured I'd try it with the cranberry juice. Eureka! I just turned that giant into a little tyke. It's delicious, not terribly sweet, and could either be used as a glaze for poultry or roast squash, or sweetened up with a touch of your favorite sweetener, it'll make a great dessert sauce. I'm thinking of drizzling it over an apple cobbler...

I started to cook it down as is, but then decided it could use a little help from our good friends, those wonderful spices and seasonings we use to mull cider, wine, and poach pears--ginger, cloves, cinnamon and allspice. And a slice of lemon.

This smells great as it cooks, no better scent in your home
 than simmering spices!

There is no real recipe:

Pretty to look at and pretty to eat: Spiced Cranberry Syrup

Just put your half gallon or so of cranberry juice in a big, non-reactive pan and start boiling. Add a slice of lemon, a cinnamon stick, 2-3 whole cloves, and 3-4 allspice berries. Slice off 3-4 chunks of fresh ginger the size of quarters and toss those in too. Boil it until it's just syrupy. You'll be able to tell when it just lightly coats a spoon.  You'll have about 1-1/2 to 2 cups of spiced cranberry syrup when its done. Strain out the spices, lemon and ginger. Store in a covered jar, in the fridge.

Smoked Grilled Chicken with Bourbon Peach Glaze: First, The Brine

By the time our big family BBQ rolls around tomorrow, I intend to be lolling on the patio with a glass of Amy's and Janey's Sangria in my hand. I'll post that too, soon. That's my intention, although it probably won't actually happen until everyone has been totally stuffed. Usually I'm up half the night before the party, tending briskets in the smoker, but this year's smaller group will feast on juicy, plump smoked  and grilled chicken glistening with peach bourbon glaze. It's a big plus for me or for any party because you can brine them one day, smoke the next, chill and grill and glaze the day of the party. If you don't have a smoker, you can smoke-grill the chicken all in one shot.

Brining is the best way I know to assure your smoked and / or grilled meat and poultry stay moist during the cooking process. Plus, they are perfectly seasoned throughout. When you smoke food, the salt and sugar from the brine, when dry on the surface, allow the smoke to stick to the skin and meat.

The boiling brine actually smells good enough to eat.
 But don't.

I am a BIG  fan of Michael Ruhlman's tips on brining and I use his basic 5% brine for just about everything that goes into the smoker. I do switch up the flavor profile and add my own seasonings. Use a good digital kitchen scale to weigh the Morton's kosher salt  and go metric for the water.  You can measure it all, but it's not as accurate as compounding a recipe by weight. The honey-lemon flavor in the brine melds perfectly with the bourbon and peaches in the glaze. Sooo delicious. Bet there won't be any leftovers.

I currently have about 9 pounds of chicken parts soaking in this brine concoction overnight right now and will smoke them after they get to dry out a bit and form a pellicle. More on that in another post. Let's just get to the brining. You see in the picture that the whole deal is in a 2.5 gallon zip top bag resting in a big bowl in the fridge. The chicken parts will stay in there about 10-12 hours, depending on when my caffeine kicks in and I set up my smoker.

A savory beauty bath for chicken before grilling or smoking.

Here's how to make your brine. You can probably get up to about 10 pounds of chicken into this remarkable stuff. You can use any type of UN-iodized plain salt if you are weighing. Just stick to the 200 g.

Honey Lemon Smoked Chicken Brine

4 liters of water
200 g. Morton's Kosher salt
Zest of one large lemon in long strips (use a veg. peeler)
5 big garlic cloves, smashed and peeled
1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
1 tsp. whole black peppercorns
1/3 cup honey
10 bay leaves
1/2 tsp dried thyme

Mix everything in a big pot and bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve the salt. Let cool to room temperature, and then chill. Pour the cold brine over the chicken in a big bag, or in a non-reactive bowl. Weigh the chicken down with a heavy plate  if you are using a bowl so it stays submerged. Place the whole kaboodle in the fridge and let it soak for 8 -12 hours before grilling or smoking.