Have a Chuckle, make a chuckle: cranberry fruit gelees

Ragazzi, Annalena knows that some of you are going to look at the word "cranberry" and think "why the HELL is she giving us that recipe now?"  Ah, yes, Annalena understands.  But pace, pace carini.  There is some method to her madness.  Ascoltate (LISTEN UP)

She only encountered this recipe at the end of last week and had to try it.  And she has.  But in order to try it, Annalena had to secure an ingredient that is shamefully absent in NYC:  fruit pectin.

Pectin, for those of you who are not familiar with this rather gooey, somewhat unpleasant looking stuff, is what stiffens jams (NOT the jams you wear, my preciousses).  No, the jams (and jellies, etc), that you eat.  It is found in high quantities in things like the white rind of citrus, and fruit like quinces, unripe apples, and so forth. And you can find it anywhere people make their own preserves.

Which explains, in large part, why it is nearly absent in New York City.  Annalena made jams and jellies one fateful summer and fall, many years ago (she was barely in her 30s.  THAT's how long ago it was).    The response she got was along the lines of "you're nuts."  And indeed, having done it, she was/is/always will be.  However, for many parts of this country, preserving is a way of life.  Jaded New Yorkers, as ourselves, who are used to being able to get anything they want, at any time they want, are simply not used to a situation where "if you didn't make it, you're not having it."  And it is far more prevalent than you might think. So, as she needed pectin for this recipe (which she found on David Lebovitz' blog,  and which he took from another),  Annalena turned to that supermarket in the cloud (not the clouds.  Annalena is told she must refer to "the cloud"):  Amazon.  It arrived on Sunday evening.  And Annalena got to work on Monday night.

Now, all of you have, at one point or another, eaten that candy called a "Chuckle," yes?  Ah, the smiles of recognition. Well, ragazzi, they are a play on "gelee du fruits"  which are much more seasonal, much more delicate, and much more expensive.  They are made, usually by French  (as the more astute of you could tell from the name), from fruit, in season, sugar, and pectin.  They hold up, and they serve as delightful little items at the end of meals: what the  French would call mignardises (and which we might call a treat with coffee).  Well, Chuckles are one of Annalena's favorite candies.  She likes fruit gelees more.  And the chance to make these herself?  Well..

Ok, here is what you need.  A lemon.  A small one.  12 ounces of cranberries (conveniently, this is the size of the bag you can buy.  Annalena has no problem if you buy these cranberries. She likes this company).  You also need 6 ounces of liquid pectin, which is either one standard bottle, or two standard pouches.  Finally, and this is important:  VERY important:  2.5 cups of sugar.  No substitutions, no shorts.  If you do not use all of this sugar, this recipe will not work.  There is a chemical reaction that happens between sugar and pectin, and it is, as chemists say  "stoichiometric," meaning the ratios of the two are key.  (Annalena studied chemistry in her youth).  So if you're willing to get all of this together, let's go.

Take an 8 inch square pan, and line it with parchment paper, with longer sides so that you can lift it out. This entails using two pieces, and laying them perpendicular to the other.  Annalena uses her cooking spray to hold the paper down.  It's a good thing.

Slice your lemon thin, and pull out the seeds as you go. Put it in a food processor with those cranberries, and half a cup of water. Then, process.  Process until it's as smooth as you want it.  Five minutes will give you very smooth, and three will give you slightly chunky.

When you're there, put it in a pot with the sugar, and stir it.  Then, turn on the heat to medium, and watch it.  When it begins to boil, stir, for 4 minutes.  Take it off the heat, and add in the pectin.  Put it back on the heat, and boil for a minute.  Now, pour it all into your prepared pan, and let it cool down.

During the cooling process, this solidifies a lot - not enough , but it does solidify.  When it's cool, move it into the refrigerator onto a stable surface. This is important, because while it may seem very solid to you, it is a gel, and gels flow.   You could easily wind up with a thick end, and a thin end.  This is not necessarily a bad thing, but if you want all even slices, it is.

Chill this overnight.  The next day, pull it out of the pan, via that paper.  Invert it onto a plate, and pat it dry.  Then do the inversion to another plate, and pat the other side dry.  Let it dry at room temperature for a few more hours, before you cut it into 1x1 inch pieces.  You'll get 60-64 of them.

Now, you can roll these in sugar, or you can roll them in cocoa, or, you can dip them in chocolate.  However you do it, you have something which, Annalena bets, you've never had before.  If nothing else, you have a party trick to impress people with the next time you have a fancy dinner.

Happy Thanksgiving, ragazzi.  Annalena feels she's been generous with you as of late, so forgive her if she disappears until after this holiday. As the song goes. "she's got work to do/got so much work to do."