I’m guessing there’s a good chance you’re stressed out right now. Maybe you’re wrapping up things at work before scurrying home to . . . well, work some more. Perhaps you’re traveling and hoping Mother Nature doesn’t affect your plans. Who decided all major holidays should be in the middle of winter? Or maybe you’re at home prepping food and the house for tomorrow, taking one final inventory of the pantry before you head to the store along with everyone else in the world. I feel your pain on that one. I’ll be at the grocery store today. You might also have guests arriving soon, adding to the to do list.
While I don’t travel on Thanksgiving anymore, I have, so I know what you’re going through. It can be chaos. Packing, traveling, unpacking, cooking. It’s enough to make us forget what this day is all about. Sure it’s about fantastic food, watching football and parades, putting up Christmas decorations. But mostly, it’s about spending time with the people we love and enjoying their company. It’s about being thankful.
My best advice? Take a deep breath. That’s it. Right now. Stop what you’re doing and just breathe. One or five minutes isn’t going to ruin everything and throw your schedule into shambles. A few minutes now will ensure calm success later.
To help you out more, I made Easy Homemade Cranberry Sauce. I don’t really eat any traditional foods on Thanksgiving. Filet mignon is on the menu at my house. One of the reasons I don’t like Thanksgiving food is because much of it comes from a can, and homemade food is much tastier. I know it’s easier to use canned foods, but with this cranberry sauce there are no excuses. A few simple ingredients, little prep time, and ten minutes on the stove give you thick, flavorful, homemade cranberry sauce. It has the perfect balance of tart and sweet, enhanced by plump dried cherries. Maple syrup gives a smooth flavor that adds complexity, not just sweetness. It’s also vegan and gluten free, meaning everyone at your Thanksgiving feast can enjoy it! Best of all, you can make it today and serve tomorrow! This is sure to become a new Thanksgiving tradition!
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Easy Homemade Cranberry Sauce
- Total Time: 15 minutes
- Yield: Varies
Ingredients
- 1 12 ounce bag fresh cranberries, washed and picked over
- ½ cup dried tart cherries
- Zest of one orange
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¾ cup water
- 1/3 cup granulated sugar
- 1/3 cup pure maple syrup
Instructions
- In a medium saucepan over medium heat, stir together cranberries, cherries, orange zest, cinnamon, water, sugar, and maple syrup. Bring to a boil while stirring frequently. Continue to cook until the sauce has thickened and most of the berries have burst, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly. Serve warm, room temperature or chilled. Sauce may be stored in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 1 week.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
I love the flavour combination of this recipe! I´ve wanted to make something with cranberries, zest of orange and cinnamon for weeks now.. I´m still thinking if I should make a loaf bread, muffins or just something completely different. Thanks for inspiring me once again 🙂 Xx
Cranberry muffins are my favorite. A little orange zest and juice and cinnamon and a crumb topping – yum! It made my day to hear that I inspire you! Thank you so much, Johlene 🙂
I’m so thankful we’re not traveling this Thanksgiving … it can be so stressful! Instead I have a little work to do and then it’s cooking cooking cooking. Which, not gonna lie, I’m pretty excited about : ) Have a fantastic Thanksgiving!!
Happy Thanksgiving, Ashley!
This looks so much better than that jelly from a can!
and this is my last year of a peaceful Thanksgiving. Next year I’m gonna have to figure out how to divide time between mine and Michael’s family’s *sigh*
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Dividing time between families is so tough. Maybe you can do one for Thanksgiving and one for Christmas. That always worked the best for us.
ha! If only it were that easy. Both of our parents our divorced, and his dad is remarried.
So we have: my dad’s side. My mom’s side. His dad’s side. His stepmom’s side. and his mom’s side. For a grand total of 5 families. We’re def. not doing all, it’s just a matter of figuring out what we go to.
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This is great and very timely! I will be making this recipe tomorrow! Thank you so much for sharing! Have a wonderful Thanksgiving! <3
Diana
http://www.ManhattanImageandStyle.com
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I hope you love it as much as I did! Thanks, Diana! Happy Thanksgiving!
Our Thanksgiving celebration will include turkey, stuffing and gravy….all the usual suspects! My family longs for the taste of tradition! Homemade cranberry sauce will fit it nicely! A fabulous addition and so much better than the can from the store!
Love the cherries in this! Have a great Thanksgiving, Laura!
Happy Thanksgiving, Abbe!
Never added cherries to my cranberry – I should. This looks terrific. Happy Thanksgiving!
Happy Thanksgiving, John!
I know once you make it for the first time, it’s like so easy, and you’re like “why didn’t I do this sooner in life?” LOL
So many things are like that. It’s all this is so easy and so much tastier than store bought.
This is by far the best cranberry sauce! I saved it on Food 52 years ago and make it EVERY year. It is now removed from their site so I had to stalk your website for the recipe! Thank you for your contribution and I have saved your site in my favs!
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Thank you, Christina! I am glad you found it here. I still see it on Food52, so I’m not sure what’s going on. But the story had a happy ending, so that’s all that matters 🙂
I went hunting for this recipe where I originally found it (and bookmarked it), and poof, under the original “secret ingredient” title, it defaulted to a rather anodyne substitute. I commented, and another visitor to the site, did a search (thanking me for remembering your name), and there it was. I’ve made it 2 years in a row, and it always draws the comments we all hope for when contributing an essential side at Thanksgiving. Apologies for no writing sooner.
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Hi Hugh! I am so glad the recipe has made such a big impact! I have no idea what happened on Food52, but it will definitely always be available here 🙂
Hi Laura!
I’m just seeing your response 10 months later! I’ve just made your recipe again and a whole new crowd will be tasting it this year. I’m posting your recipe on Fb with a link to Pies & Plots. You make me look like I can actually do something in the kitchen each year. 😉 Thanks for that.
Warm regards, Hugh
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Hugh, thank you so much for sharing my recipe. I am thrilled you enjoy it and it is a hit at holiday gatherings 🙂
Your recipe is my go-to and wanted to share with a friend so I went to Food 52, and like Hugh was redirected to a recipe that did not resemble this delicious recipe (and included 1 tsp salt….!!). I have made this recipe for 8 years now at Thanksgiving and it is always a big hit!!
Hope you don’t mind but I posted your recipe in the comments there for the other people that were looking for your special recipe. Thanks for a great recipe – it’s a keeper!!
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Janie, Thank you for linking to my recipe! I am sorry it’s so hard to find on Food 52, but I’m thrilled you found it here and still enjoy it 🙂