My Favorite Cranberry Sauce

I’ve never been a fan of Cranberry Sauce.  That red jelly stuff from a can… (my sincere apologies if you like it.)  No thank you… Cranberry Sauce has never been my cup of tea.

That is, until I tried my Mother-in-Law’s homemade sauce.

And despite my prejudice, it was love at first taste.

Nowadays it wouldn’t be Thanksgiving without the delicious smell of cranberry sauce simmering on the stove.  And what would Thanksgiving turkey be without a big dollop of sauce on top?  Or best yet, turkey sandwiches on rolls with cranberry sauce the next day.

Making cranberry sauce is so quick and easy, there is no excuse for buying the stuff in a can.  And when I say it makes your house smell good, I mean I would still make Cranberry sauce even if I didn’t like how it tasted, just for the smell.

Here’s her wonderful recipe:

Kit’s Cranberry Sauce

• 12 oz. package fresh cranberries
• 1 cup water
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 large Granny Smith apple
  
• 1 large Anjou pear
• 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon cloves
• zest of one orange

Rinse cranberries and place in a medium sauce pan with sugar and water.  Cook over medium heat until cranberries start to pop, about 10 minutes.

Peel and cube the apple and pear into small cubes.  Zest one orange.

When cranberries start to pop, add remaining ingredients and cook for about 5 minutes or until apples and pears soften.

It’s hard not to like this Cranberry sauce, just look at the ingredients.

1.  Combine cranberries, water and sugar in a medium saucepan.  Cook over medium heat until cranberries start to pop.

2.  Peel and cube the apple and pear into small pieces.

3.  Zest one orange.

4.  Once the cranberries start popping, add remaining ingredients.

5.  Cook for about 5 minutes more over medium heat or until the pears and apples are softened.

The sauce will thicken as it cools.

I like it straight on a spoon.  But I can hardly wait for turkey…