Cranberry Sauce - easy, gluten free, and low sugar

One of the things I loved about Thanksgiving when I was younger was watching my mom open the can of "cranberry sauce", and then it being upended over a fancy dish. Then it would slide out slowly, making that swooooosh-sluuuurp-plop sound into the dish. And it had lines around it, from the can. It was so cool! Cool in the same way Spam is cool, right? Who doesn't love meat that comes in a can?

Well, it turns out that cranberries are really delicious. The fresh ones. They are tart and textural, and their strong flavor is perfect to brighten something up a bit.

Well, this is what sits on the table these days for Thanksgiving. It's fresh and bright, and it's perfect smeared over turkey or bread.

Cranberry Sauce

2 parts fresh cranberries
1 part orange juice
cinnamon
honey, if desired (but not really needed!)

This is so incredibly easy. Rinse your cranberries and pick out anything weird, like a discolored cranberry, or a rock. It's interesting to discover, if this is your first time using fresh cranberries, that cranberries aren't always that dark red color that they name paint colors after. Some are pale pink, some a little yellowish, and some dark. They're all good. Plop them into a pan on the stove.

Pour in orange juice, and sprinkle cinnamon on top. For about 20 minutes, let the cranberries simmer on medium. It will bubble a lot, and you won't need a scented candle. This is what holidays smell like! You will hear them popping as they heat, and then the little gems of tartness release pectin, the same stuff you use to make jam. Pectin thickens the mixture naturally! Stir it around and mash the berries a bit, so that the pectin will be released. Simmer a little longer until the syrup part thickens to your taste.

Cool and serve.

Find other things delicious at Slightly Indulgent Mondays, which will shortly be Tuesdays!