HOME TOUR

Can you believe we’re fast forwarding a bit to Thanksgiving? Before you know it it will be here. But in reality, who knows when everyone will actually get together to celebrate the beauty of family and thankfulness. This will be the first time in over a decade we won’t be in California visiting our family. Which makes me sad. Clearly nothing is the same since my mom passed away including a global pandemic that steals our fleeting chances to gather. I’m determined to pour some lovely into Thanksgiving this year and frankly am inspired by the colors of last year’s Thanksgiving table. This sweet blog hop is all about our favorite Thanksgiving dishes and one of mine is an easy homemade orange cranberry sauce.

I’ve been making it for many many years at this point and clipped it out of a magazine ages ago. I can’t remember which one, maybe Real Simple but I couldn’t find the recipe on their site. I’ve modified it over the years to suit our preferences but it’s a good one.

Prior to this recipe, I had never made my own cranberry sauce. I grew up with my dad’s canned Ocean Spray cranberry jelly which my mom would slide out of the can and slice. I think some dishes are a requirement because they’ve just always been. The comfort and delight of familiarity. I never cared much for the jiggliness but my dad loved it.  This homemade version is delicious and a great palate-cleanser for all those yummy flavors of Thanksgiving. The fresh ginger helps settle your stomach and is a must on my Thanksgiving menu each year.

INGREDIENTS

16 oz Fresh Cranberries

2/3 C Granulated Sugar

1/2 C Apricot Preserves

2 Tbsp Salted Butter

2 Tbsp Finely Chopped Fresh Ginger, skin peeled off

1 C Fresh Squeezed Orange Juice

Zest of a Orange

Start by browning butter in a saucepan. I like the nutty flavor it adds when I let the butter brown ever so slightly. Once you start to see those initial brown grains appearing, quickly add your minced ginger. Stir constantly until fragrant, less than one minute.

Add the fresh cranberries and granulated sugar. Stir to coat the cranberries. Add orange zest.

Pour in your fresh orange juice. You can either buy a couple oranges and juice them yourself or buy the unpasteurized, fresh squeezed organic orange juice. A mouthful to say, but it sure tastes the closest to fresh squeezed orange juice.  Add the apricot preserves and stir until the sugar and the preserves dissolve.

Turn the heat down to a low simmer. The cranberries will swell and burst open and the sauce will thicken, simmer for about 20 minutes. Transfer to a bowl and serve warm. This is also a good one to make ahead of time so you have one less thing to do on Thanksgiving. I usually pull mine out of the refrigerator an hour or so before we eat so it’s at room temperature. It’s delicious at every temperature though.

I hope you enjoy this recipe for homemade orange cranberry sauce and the beautiful pictures by Ruth Eileen Photography. I can’t wait to try some of these recipes below. No matter what life brings, I hope you can find the lovely in it and when you celebrate, I hope it’s with all those you love and a delicious one.