A Southern Thanksgiving - Celebrate Muscadine!
Scuppernong Grapes Highlight a Thanksgiving Feast
Sep 20, 2009
Visit any wooded area of the Southeastern United States from August through late September to find a true southern delicacy – Muscadine grapes. Make them the centerpiece of a southern styled Thanksgiving Day celebration. The beautiful bronze to purplish-black fruit grow wild all over the southeast. Harvest them in late summer and early fall to have them ready for a southern Thanksgiving Feast that will be long remembered.
Where to Find Muscadine or Scuppernong Products
Those who are not fortunate enough to live in the southeast can still explore the taste sensation of America’s original grape. Because of recent research showing that Muscadine grapes are a super-food full of antioxidants and other phytonutrients, Muscadine and Scuppernong grapes and their products are becoming more widely available to the public at large. Look for a variety of Muscadine wine, jelly, syrups, sauces, preserves and breads from specialty retailers and online, too.
How to Use Muscadines
Usually, Muscadines are cooked and frozen before use. The frozen juice, hulls and pulp will keep well in the freezer for two or three years, and can be taken out later for making a variety of recipes. Muscadines can also be washed and frozen whole, although doing so will decrease storage time significantly. (LSU AgCenter)
Spiced Scuppernong (Muscadine) Sauce Recipe
This is a great alternative to Cranberry sauce. It pairs equally well with fowl, cured ham or pork roast!
Ingredients:
- 5 quarts (about 7 ½ pounds) of grapes
- 3 cups water
- 6 cups sugar
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup vinegar
- 3 ¾ teaspoons Spice Mixture (see recipe below)
Instructions:
- Deseed the grapes by squeezing them between your fingers. The pulp will pop out, yielding about 2 ½ quarts of hulls.
- Place the pulp in a sauce pan and heat it through.
- Reserving the pulp and juice; remove seeds by pressing heated pulp through a sieve.
- Set the heated pulp and juice aside.
- Place hulls and water in another sauce pan; adding 1 cup juice from the heated pulp.
- Cover the sauce pan and gently boil the hulls until they are tender – about 15 minutes. (Now, return ½ cup of the hull juice back to the cooked pulp and set aside. This will give the pulp a pretty color so that it can later be used for making jam!)
- Add sugar and salt to the hulls.
- Bring this up to a rapid boil and cook the hulls until the mixture thickens – about 15 minutes.
- Add vinegar and continue boiling about 5 minutes longer. It will be almost at “jelly stage.”
- Stir in the prepared Spice Mix; combining it thoroughly.
- Skim foam from sauce.
- Fill sterilized canning jars to ½ inch of their tops.
- Wipe jar edges and set lids.
- Process jars for 5 minutes in a boiling water bath to preserve.
Spice Mixture
Ingredients:
- 1 teaspoon ground allspice
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground cloves
- 2 teaspoons mace
Instructions:
- In a small bowl, mix all of the spices together.
- Note: Only 3 ¾ teaspoons of this mixture is required for the Muscadine Sauce Recipe (above).
Spiced Muscadine Bread
This wonderfully aromatic and flavorful bread will complement any family gathering, and makes a truly special addition to the Thanksgiving Day table.
Ingredients:
- ½ cup butter, softened
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 eggs
- 2 cups all purpose flour, sifted
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ cup milk
- ½ cup Muscadine Sauce (recipe above)
- ½ cup pecans, chopped
Instructions:
- Pre-heat oven to 350°F.
- Grease and flour a standard loaf pan and set aside.
- In a mixing bowl, cream together the softened butter and sugar.
- Beat in the eggs, one at a time, until well combined.
- In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, salt and baking powder. Stir.
- Continue mixing the creamed ingredients while alternately adding the milk and dry ingredients.
- When well combined, fold in the Muscadine Sauce and pecans.
- Pour batter into loaf pan and bake for about 45 minutes. Bread will be done when a toothpick inserted in the center of the loaf comes out clean.
- Remove the loaf from its pan and place on a wire rack to cool.
Note: This recipe may be doubled and it freezes very well.
Nutritional Benefits of Muscadine (Scuppernong) Grapes
According to various studies including, Health Benefits of Red Muscadine Wine (2002 - 2005) conducted by researchers at the University of Florida, the muscadine grape was shown to promote neurological health, and to possess antioxidant and anti-cancer properties.
Additionally, when used as a normal component of food preparation Muscadines grapes showed even greater health benefits than did combinations of their constituent nutrients.
Make this year's feast a Thanksgiving invitation to a healthier celebration by incorporating the southern Muscadine!
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