My mom makes this relish every year. She has made it for so many people, who all love it.

It is really easy. You will need either a manual or electric grinder, or a food processor. If you only have a blender, you can use that too, but what you’ll want to watch is that you don’t liquefy the fruits. If you’re using a blender, chop small batches of fruit and use brief pulses of chopping to prevent liquefying the fruit.

Update 11/16/09: We like to stir this relish into our morning kefir! It is delicious!

• 1 to 2 pounds raw cranberries
• 4 apples
• 4 oranges
• 1/4 to 1/2 cup sweetener of your choice – honey, Rapadura, Sucanat, maple syrup, evaporated cane juice, etc.

Wash cranberries. Remove any bad cranberries.

Wash and core the apples, leaving the peel on, and cut into wedges.

Peel the oranges and cut into wedges.

Chop all ingredients in batches in the food processor or food grinder. Mix well. Add sweetener, to taste. Store in the refrigerator overnight to let the flavors mingle. Enjoy!

5/17/09: In my effort to remake our favorite dishes according to traditional food preparation methods, I have remade this recipe to include sprouted spelt flour and virgin coconut oil.

The bars can be gluten-free if you use buckwheat and sorghum flours. However, I have not worked out the soaking and/or sprouting of these gluten-free grains.

In creating these bars, my aim wasn’t to copy regular white-flour and white-sugar carrot cake. My goal was to make a bar/cake that my family would love that had the benefits of fruit-sweetening, while also being dairy-free and egg-free (and gluten-free, if using recipe as originally written). These, the resulting carrot bars, are good, very good. We love them.

• 2 tablespoons flax seed meal
• 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons filtered water
• 1-1/2 cups chopped dates, or 30 pitted dates
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce, or 1 small/medium apple chopped very finely in food processor
• 1/2 cup barely melted raw, virgin, unrefined coconut oil
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1-1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon allspice
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1-1/2 cups sprouted spelt flour (old version: 3/4 cup buckwheat flour plus 3/4 cup sorghum flour)
• 3 cups grated carrots (3 large or 4-5 medium carrots)
• 1 cup raisins
• 1/2 cup chopped nuts

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grease (2) 8″ round or square baking pans, or (1) 9″ by 13″ pan.

In large mixing bowl, whisk together flax seed meal and 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons of water. Let sit for 5 minutes to get gummy.

Meanwhile, blend dates and 1/2 cup water together in blender or food processor until smooth. Add to mixing bowl.

If using whole apple instead of applesauce, wash, quarter and deseed apple (no need to peel). Chop until very fine in food processor.

Add apples or applesauce, oil, vanilla, cinnamon, allspice and nutmeg to mixing bowl. Mix well.

Add salt, baking soda, baking powder, and flour(s) to mixing bowl. Mix until incorporated.

Add carrots, raisins and nuts. Fold in until incorporated.

Transfer to prepared baking pan(s).

Bake for 45 minutes, when it should have taken on a deep brown color. Lightly cover the pans with foil and bake for an additional 15 minutes. A toothpick inserted will come out clean before it is really done, so use deep browning as an indicator that the cake is almost done.

Transfer pan(s) to cooling rack. Let cool in pan(s). Serve warm or cold. Store uneaten portions in a covered container in the refrigerator. This is very delicious on the second day, reheated in a toaster oven.

© Copyright 2007-2009 by Wardeh Harmon.

Sweetened solely by dates and apples, they are not overly sweet. If you desire sweeter, feel free to add honey or agave (reduce the amount of almond milk accordingly). I believe one could also add date sugar without making any adjustments.

Date-Apple Bars — Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free, Egg-Free

Loosely based on Date Apple Cookies from The Guilt-Free Gourmet by Vicki B. Griffin

Using a 9 x 13 inch pan, this recipe yields 24 cookie bars

• 1-1/2 cups plain date pieces (not floured or sugared)
• 1 cup filtered water
• 2-1/4 cups apples, shredded, unpeeled (about 3 small to medium size apples)
• 1/2 cup almond milk
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 5 cups rolled oats (not instant or quick)
• 1 cup unsweetened, shredded coconut
• 1 tablespoon cinnamon
• 3 teaspoons guar gum (optional)
• 1/3 cup leftover almond pulp, from straining almond milk (optional)
• 1 cup chopped nuts (optional)
• 1 cup raisins (optional)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. With coconut oil or grapeseed oil, grease a 9 x 13 inch pan well.

Blend dates and water in blender. Transfer to mixing bowl. Add all other ingredients. Mix well.

Transfer cookie mixture to pan. Spread out evenly using a spatula.

Bake for 40 to 45 minutes, until golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Remove from oven and place on cooling rack. Let cool completely before cutting into bars. Store in an airtight container.

© Copyright 2007 by Wardeh Harmon.