Cranberry Ginger Milkshakes

I'll admit that I've made a few tasty dishes in my day, but any cook would be lying if he/she didn't admit to a few stinkers too. A few more memorable inedibles of mine:

- The pumpkin soup that was so oniony, my husband said it was good for "opening his sinuses."

- The curry-rubbed Christmas Eve pheasant that really only tasted like cinnamon.

- My specialty of "cajun" (re: blackened) grilled cheese sandwiches. 

Occasionally I will ruin a dish beyond repair, but usually I can salvage it or repurpose it for something else. Take, for instance, my attempt at Christmas Eve cranberry sauce. 

I was making Swedish meatballs for Christmas Eve. Not having the traditional lingonberry sauce, I decided cranberry would work in a pinch. Using fresh cranberries and following the directions on the back of the cranberry package, I simmered water, sugar and cranberries until somewhat thickened, but it was still pretty liquidy, the rest of the meal was ready, and I wanted it done now. Then had the brilliant idea of putting some of the hot cranberry liquid and berries in the blender. 

Clearly, I should've known better. Hot liquid + closed blender do not mix. 

Regardless, I cleaned up my mess and we enjoyed a somewhat-liquid cranberry sauce with our Christmas Eve meatballs. However, after dinner, I had a TON of this under-simmered thin cranberry sauce leftover. A few days later, I made pheasant cabbage rolls and simmered down the sauce to a thicker consistency to serve alongside, but still more of the cranberry concoction remained. 

Enter cranberry ginger milkshakes. About 1/4 cup cranberry sauce in the bottom of each glass. Separately, in a blender, blend vanilla ice cream, milk, and a little bit of grated fresh ginger.  Pour over cranberry sauce, stir, sip, and know that in addition to making lemons into lemonade, a cranberry sauce "fail" can make a mighty tasty treat.