This installment of Cooking Through the Counties features a recipe by Lorraine Goven, Cranberry Crisp, included in the cookbook Old and New, Tried and True from the Women’s Guild at St. Lucien Church in Spruce Pines, Mitchell County. Careful readers will notice a glaring error in this recipe – the main ingredient is listed as a single 16-ounce can of strawberries. The main ingredient should be canned cranberries. Interestingly, canned cranberries are no longer sold in that size; now the cans contain just 14 ounces.

My goal in making this recipe was to discover a seasonal sweet treat that would be quick to put together. Mrs. Goven’s directions seemed straightforward and based on frequent experience.

Everyone’s oven is a bit different. I initially checked on the crisp at 35 minutes of baking at 350°F and needed to go another 10 minutes.

This was delicious! There is a variety of textures in that the brown sugar and oats at the bottom were chewy while those on the top were crisp, just as the recipe says. I don’t know what difference the missing two ounces of cranberries made, as the combination was a sweet treat. I recommend serving this with either hot tea or coffee.

Thank you, Mrs. Goven, for submitting such a delectable recipe!

-Carolyn Shankle