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1
Wash and coarsely chop half of the cranberries; reserve the rest in the fridge. Pulsing in a food processor works well for this, or use a knife. Don't worry about cutting all of the berries, or whether they're uniformly chopped. You just want to release some of the juice at this point.
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2
Put the cranberries in a glass or other non-reactive container. Sprinkle the brown sugar over the cranberries and stir well.
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3
Put the dried fruit and bay leaves in a small, heavy, non-reactive saucepan with 1 1/2 cups of filtered water. Bring to a boil, then immediately reduce the heat and let simmer for about 10 minutes. Turn off the heat, cover the pan, and let it sit for another 10 minutes.
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4
Pour the contents of the saucepan over the cranberries and stir well. Cover and let sit at room temperature for at least several hours, or until you go to bed, if sooner. Stir the contents well to incorporate any sugar on the bottom of the container, cover, and refrigerate overnight.
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5
The next morning, stir the contents of the container well and return it to the fridge for at least another 24 hours, or up to five days.
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6
The night before you plan to serve this (or early that morning), remove the cranberry compote from the fridge and put into a small, heavy, non-reactive saucepan. Bring the heat up to a boil, then reduce immediately and simmer ever so gently for about 10 minutes, stirring every few minutes.
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7
Turn the heat off, cover, and let sit for about 10 minutes. Meanwhile, wash and coarsely chop the reserved cranberries. Stir them into the compote. Store tightly covered in the fridge until 2-3 hours before serving. Bring it to room temperature, and then taste it. If it seems just too tart for you, add a bit more brown sugar, bring it back up to a simmer, and let it cook for a few minutes, stirring occasionally; then let cool. This can easily be done in the microwave.
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8
Remove the bay leaves just before serving. If there are any leftovers, store in a tightly lidded container. This will hold for another week or so in the fridge.
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9
I hope you enjoy this. ;o)
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10
This may seem like a fussy and involved cranberry sauce. It requires very little active time however. The extra steps, stolen from the classic Italian mostarda, seem well worth it. Love you.
