Food Network Magazine - (11)November 2020

in the know

Something

to Relish

If you bring cranberry relish to

the Thanksgiving table this year,

you’ll be eating a food that long

predates the holiday. Members

of the Wampanoag Tribe of

Gay Head (Aquinnah) have been

harvesting sasumuneash (sour

berries) on Martha’s Vineyard,

MA, for thousands of years, using

them to flavor and preserve meat,

dye textiles and prevent illnesses.

Today the berries are still central to

Aquinnah Wampanoag culture: Tribe

members celebrate

Cranberry Day in the

fall with traditional

foods like chowder,

quahogs, venison and,

of course, cranberries.

Stay true to the berry’s

native roots this year

and try a relish

recipe from the

National Museum of

the American Indian.

CRAB APPLE AND CRANBERRY RELISH

Dice 8 ounces unpeeled crab apples or Granny Smith apples and cook

in a medium saucepan over medium heat, stirring frequently, until soft,

8 to 10 minutes. Add 1 cup fresh or frozen cranberries and cook until

they start releasing their liquid, 8 to 10 minutes. Add ½ cup sugar and

stir to dissolve. Add ¼ cup cranberry juice, taste and add more sugar if

necessary. Refrigerate, covered, for up to 3 days.

In the 1920s, cranberry-harvest yields

were so large that Tribe members

collected them in oxcarts.

NOVEMBER 2020 ●FOOD NETWORK MAGAZINE 25

FOOD PHOTO: RALPH SMITH; FOOD AND PROP STYLING: TAYLOR SMITH. TRIBE MEMBERS: MARTHA’S VINEYARD MUSEUM. RECIPE FROM

THE MITSITAM CAFE COOKBOOK: RECIPES FROM THE NATIONAL MUSEUM

OF THE AMERICAN INDIAN

BY RICHARD HETZLER. PUBLISHED BY THE NATIONAL MUSEUM OF THE AMERICAN INDIAN IN ASSOCIATION WITH FULCRUM PUBLISHING. © 2010 SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION.