Whole Cranberry Sauce

I grew up eating cranberry sauce out of the can with the little ridges on the side. At some point whole cranberry sauce - still out of the can - was introduced into our Thanksgiving dinner. I say our Thanksgiving dinner because in an Italian family, all of the traditional Thanksgiving food is merely a formality with like 6 other courses of Italian food on either side of the turkey et al. The story of thanksgiving in my family will have to wait until next year, don't let me forget.

So, real cranberry sauce, and better yet, served warm, was another one of those things I discovered after I have my own kitchen and its a recipe that I love to play with from year to year. I've done a very traditional mix of sugar, cranberries, and some water, but I've also played with tons of varying ingredients. Think brown sugar, maple syrup, cinnamon, orange peel, orange juice, apple cider (hard and soft), orange liquor, bourbon, port wine, I'm sure there are more that I just can't think of right now..... This is where I've landed in the last couple of years.

If you're a store-bought canned cran fan, you can save yourself the read and move on to another post. Don't feel bad though, I was shocked to learn that one of my best foodie friends, MJ, only eats the canned stuff. And I still love her...

THE RECIPE:

24 ounces fresh or frozen, thawed cranberries (about 5 cups)

1 ½c packed light brown sugar

½ c ruby or tawny port, or bourbon

Finely grated zest of 1 orange

Kosher salt

Put the cranberries into a medium saucepan.

Add the sugar, port and half the orange zest and stir to combine.

Season with a generous pinch of salt.

Bring the mixture to a simmer over medium heat and cook, stirring often, until many of the berries have popped and the sauce has thickened and is jammy and syrupy, About 10 to 15 minutes.

Stir in the remaining orange zest.

Store in an air tight container until ready to serve.

If you're a canner, this processes very well and little 8 oz. jars make great hostess gifts.