6 raisin recipes for sweet, spiced and unexpected dishes, whether you love or loathe the tiny sweet
Raisins are, in a word, polarizing. Some people loathe them, feeling betrayed when they reach for a cookie and finding a chewy raisin instead of chocolate chips, and others are confused how anyone could dislike a teeny tiny, sweet dried fruit.
I’m not a fan of straight-up raisins, but I also believe there is at least one method of cooking any fruit or vegetable that can make it edible, even delicious (allergies notwithstanding). And I’m happy to say that here at Voraciously, we’ve got many recipes for raisin lovers, raisin skeptics and even raisin haters. Read on for some of our favorite ways to feature raisins, and make sure to search “raisins” in our Recipe Finder for even more ways to enjoy them.
Roasted Eggplant With Fresh Mozzarella, Tomatoes, Pickled Raisins and Mint, pictured above. We may have accidentally uncovered a trick to liking a food item we generally don’t — pickling it! I pickle beets, copy editor Jim Webster pickles cauliflower, and in this recipe, raisin-hater Joe Yonan finds that pickling raisins rehydrates them slightly and adds a briny touch to offset their intense sweetness, a process that makes them darn tasty.
Picadillo. Sweet raisins add a lovely offset to briny olives, ground beef, spices and tomato. Need a vegan version of this dish? Click here.
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Mango Chutney. Some folks on the fence about raisins find golden raisins easier to love. And they’re beyond easy to love with tart-sweet mango, cranberries, some spice-heat and vinegar zing in this flavorful condiment.
Mary Berry’s Orange Tea Bread. Becky Krystal loves raisins and Mary Berry, and she gets both in this tea bread. If you make it, you can too. Soak raisins and currants (or all raisins!) in hot tea so they rehydrate slightly and absorb tea flavors.
Fruit and Nut Energy Bars. Ellie Krieger needed to develop a homemade energy bar after finding the store-bought ones “too sweet, too pasty, too artificial-tasting.” These rely on raisins, dried apricots and dates for gentle sweetness and plenty of nuts and seeds.
Pasta With Pine Nuts and Golden Raisins. Forget your usual pasta sauce — this ultra simple combination of raisins and pine nuts makes for a simple pasta dish with flavor you didn’t expect. Harness the pine nut and raisin combination once more in Rosa’s Spinach Egg Tortilla With Pine Nuts and Raisins.
More from Voraciously:
These 8 vegetarian stews are filling and flavorful
5 hearty grains and how to use them in bowls, salads and even cake
Crown a bowl of beans with jewel-toned salad for a fresh, flavorful meal
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