Cranberry Punch

1-1/2 cups sugar
3 cups boiling water
2 cups cranberry sauce (not whole berry)
1/2 cup lemon juice
2 quarts ginger ale
1/2 cup maraschino cherries, finely chopped.
1 box raspberry sherbert

Directions:
Dissolve sugar in boiling water; add cranberry sauce and stir until smooth. Add lemon juice. Strain through a fine sieve or cheesecloth, and chill. When ready to serve, pour over scoops of raspberry sherbert in punch bowl. Add ginger ale and chopped cherries. Serves about 25.

Cranberry Fruit Salad

1/2 pound cranberries, coarsely ground
2 oranges, peeled, seeded, and ground
3 apples, cored and chopped
1 cup diced celery
2 cups sugar
2 packages cherry gelatin
3 cups boiling water
1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Directions:
Combine cranberries, oranges, apples, celery and sugar; set aside. Add gelatin to boiling water and stir until well-dissolved, about two minutes. Pour over cranberry mixture, add walnuts, and stir lightly to combine. Pour into serving dish and chill until set.

Notes:
This is from my mother Doris Hill's recipe files.

Cranberry Apple Bake

3 cups peeled and chopped apples 2 cups fresh cranberries 2 tablespoons all purpose flour 1 cup sugar

3 packages instant oatmeal (cinnamon flavor) 3/4 cup chopped pecans 1/2 cup all purpose flour 1/2 cup brown sugar, packed 1/2 cup margarine,melted

Directions:
Toss together apples, cranberries, 2 tablespoons flour, and 1 cup sugar in a 2 quart baking dish. Set aside for 1 hour. Meanwhile, combine instant oatmeal, pecans, 1/2 cup flour, brown sugar, and melted margarine. Stir together lightly to blend. After fruit mixture has set for an hour, spoon topping over it. Bake at 350° for 45 minutes.

Cranberry Nut Bread

2 cups flour 1 cup sugar 1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder 1/2 teaspoon salt 2 tablespoons vegetable oil

3/4 cup orange juice 1 egg, well beaten 1 tablespoon grated orange rind 1 cup cranberries, chopped or ground 3/4 cup chopped nuts

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350. Mix flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add vegetable oil and mix until blended. Stir in orange juice, egg, and orange peel, mixing gently just until flour is moistened. Fold in cranberries and nuts. Spoon batter into a greased and floured 9x5x3" loaf pan. Bake 60 minutes or until bread tests done when a wooden toothpick is inserted. Cool on a rack for 15 minutes before removing from pan. Cool the loaf completely, wrap it and store overnight before slicing.

Notes:
I like to purchase several bags of cranberries when they are on sale around the holidays. I freeze them, grind the frozen berries, and pack them in 1-cup portions in small freezer bags. One big cranberry-grinding mess and I'm ready for many loaves of cranberry bread.

Bernadine Brock's Cranberry Fruit Salad

1 quart cranberries
3 or 4 apples
2 cups sugar
1 cup crushed pineapple (drained)
1 cup whipped cream
2 cups miniature marshmallows
1 cup nuts

Directions:
Grind cranberries and apples together. Add sugar and let stand for 2 hours. Fold in crushed pineapple, whipped cream, marshmallows and nuts. Let stand overnight. Stir gently before serving.

Notes:
Bernadine Brock of Rose, Nebraska, placed this recipe in the Jolly Neighbors Extension Club's handwritten cookbook during the early 1960's. John and Bernadine Brock worked for Cecil Lee when he owned the ranch that I grew up on, and after we moved to the Lee place, the Brocks worked for the Shovel Dot Ranch.

Mama's Easy Cranberry Pie

1 package raspberry flavored gelatin 3/4 cup boiling water ½ cup cranberry sauce

½ cup cranberry juice cocktail 2 cups thawed whipped topping 1 baked pie shell

Directions:
Sprinkle gelatin over boiling water and stir until well blended (about 2 minutes). Add cranberry sauce and stir until well blended. Add cranberry juice and stir. Finally, fold in whipped topping. Pour into a baked pie shell and chill for 4 hours before serving.

Notes:
My mother, Doris Hill, collected this recipe and handwrote it on a card for her files.

Whole Cranberry Sauce

1 lb. cranberries, frozen or fresh
1 cup sugar
1 cup cold water

Directions:
Place all ingredients in a medium saucepan. Boil rapidly about 5 minutes until the skins of the berries break. (Usually about 5 minutes.) Cool. Makes about 4 cups.

Notes:
A tangy condiment that's good with almost any meat.