Apricot, orange and cranberry relish. Vegan-friendly recipe.

Apricots are one of my favourite fruits, they are a relative of plums but apricots have a tarter taste that lends itself perfectly to making relish or preserves, either on its own or mixed with other fruits as in this tasty recipe. Apricots are healthy too, they are full of beta-carotene, packed with fiber, potassium and vitamins A and C. They are low calorie and a powerful antioxidant. Originally from China, apricots arrived in Europe via Armenia and made their way to America in the 1700's.

This is a wonderful, vegetarian friendly relish to serve at any time of year but I think that the smells and colour of the apricots, orange and cranberry go particularly well with Christmas or Thanksgiving food. There is a warmth and depth to this preserve that serves to give comfort on cold winter evenings. It is spicy but not hot, unless you want it to be, in which case add a little more chilli to the recipe.

If you add a little sherry too, it only adds to the festive feel of this relish. Well, at least it does to me as my mother would always have a glass, or eight, of sherry at Christmas even though she never drank at all the rest of the year. We always had a large bowl of apricots and oranges on the dining table and walnuts in small glass dishes on the kitchen counter.

This apricot, orange and cranberry relish tastes just as good with cheese as it does with cold meats or pies.

I have even served it with the hot turkey on Christmas day instead of traditional cranberry sauce.

It also tastes great with a nut roast, in fact, it really does go with just about anything.

This relish will keep for a couple of weeks in a cool place. This is another good recipe for giving as a homemade present.

Ingredients.

1lb ready to use dried apricots, chopped.

2 red chillies, de seeded and chopped.

1 garlic clove, crushed.

4 small shallots, chopped. (You can use small white onions if you can’t find shallots or don’t like the taste of them.)

10fld oz white wine vinegar.

1lb soft brown sugar.

Grated rind and juice of a large orange.

½ lb fresh cranberries.

Salt and pepper to taste.

8 walnuts lightly toasted and crumbled into small pieces.

2 tsp cream sherry, optional.

Method.

Put all of the ingredients into a large saucepan. Bring to the boil slowly, reduce the heat and simmer for around forty minutes. Stir occasionally to prevent the relish from sticking to the bottom of the pan, there is nothing worse than finding black bits in your relish. The relish is ready when it has thickened and become glossy looking.

To toast the walnuts put them into a dry frying pan and fry gently for a few minutes, they don’t really change colour very much as they toast but the smell coming from the pan will tell you when they are done.Keep the pan moving to prevent the nuts from burning as this will ruin the taste. Add the toasted walnuts and the sherry, if you are using it, to the mixture and cook for a further five minutes, stirring regularly. Remove from the heat and allow the relish to cool before pouring into sterilized jars.

This is a good time to adjust the seasoning if your relish needs it. Don’t over season as the taste will get stronger as this relish matures.