"Like to cook" - the second helping

[classicdrogn]

While it's a couple days (or weeks) late for best effect and a very simple addition, it worked out so well for so little extra effort that I wanted to make a note of how I added some fresh cranberries to a standard boxed stuffing mix - put in enough of them to cover the bottom of a microwave-safe bowl, added the 1/2 cup of the cup and a half of water in the instructions on the Stovetop box so they just barely began to float, and microwaved them until I heard a couple pop and their innards made the water start to froth up.

This was then transferred to the larger bowl with previously-softened butter and the remainder of the boiling water added, then the dry bread crumb/seasonings mix poured into that and stirred up a bit (adding the dry to the wet keeps it from clumping up on the bottom, which is itself very much among the basics but not something obvious if no one ever pointed it out, and if you're writing for folks using a boxed mix It's best to assume lowest-end skill and/or experience anyway) before giving the whole thing a few minutes in the nuker before "fluffing" it, again as per the standard instructions.

A light tang of cranberry flavor was distributed nicely throughout the resulting dish while still being subtle enough to leave biting down on a whole berry to be a sudden burst of excitement on your tongue, and the intact cranberries were neither overcooked and mushy nor tough as dried ones usually end up depending on brand and preparation.