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From the inception of NPR until her retirement in September 2025, Susan Stamberg wore many hats. Her passing on the 16th of October 2025 has me reflecting on her distinctive voice, her accomplishments, and her unique interviewing style. It was her cranberry relish recipe, though, that had the most profound influence on me. I think it’s only fitting that I honor Ms. Stamberg with the original version of Mama Stamberg’s Cranberry Relish as I presented it in November of 2000.

Zichrona livracha.

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this tangy relish is a nice departure from the traditional thanksgiving cranberry sauce. i think its just yummy, while others describe its flavor as revolting. you be the judge. first, get together all the ingredients - cranberries, an onion, sugar, sour cream, horse radish and ...

... a picture of susan stamberg. while this isn't essential to the flavor of the relish, it is a special touch that i enjoy.

start out by taping up your picture of ms. stamberg to your canister set.

then measure out two cups of washed fresh firm cranberries. aren't they attractive?

hang onto the side of the food processor as you pour the cranberries in. be very careful so that you don't slip in. that chopping blade is very sharp and could seriously damage your terry cloth.

take one small onion, remove the papery peek and slice it into chunks. this always brings tears to my eyes.

sniff sniff sniff... gently place the onion in the food processor on top of the cranberries... sniff.. i think they will be very happy together... sniff...

hold onto the the bowl of the food processor and jump up and down on the on-off switch to chop up the cranberries and onions. don't jump too high so that you don't slip off the switch.

now pour the chopped up mixture into a bowl. as you can see, i have coarsely chopped my berries and onions. you may wish to chop them finer. whatever you prefer.

time to add the half a cup of sugar now.

and two tablespoons of horse radish. no actual horses are used to make horse radish, so don't worry.

using your handy bowl scraper, mix everything together. it looks good enough to eat now, doesn't it?

take a cup of sour cream, reserve 1/4 cup of it to eat with potato chips as your bedtime snack. add the remaining 3/4 cup of sour cream to the cranberry melange.

isn't this just lovely? since i left my berries a little bit chunky i have a nice contrast between the creamy pepto-bismol pink of the creamy part and the jewel toned chucks of cranberries. it's truly a work of art.

now place the completed relish into a freezer container. i have chosen a zip-lock freezer bag because i like the way it feels squishy when you touch it, but, you can put the relish in any container that holds a pint and a half and that you can put in the freezer.

freeze your relish until just before you are going to serve it. make sure that you do not mistake your relish for strawberry ice cream or a raspberry sherbet. it could be a eye opening experience if you did.

defrost your lovely relish in the fridge then place it in an attractive relish dish. this is yummy on hot roasted turkey, but also on cold turkey sandwiches, roast beef, roast beef sandwiches, prime rib and other meaty foods.

if you're like me, you will want to leave your inspiring picture of susan stamberg up through out the holiday season to enjoy while you make other holiday treats.

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