Tag Archives: vegan

Easy Cranberry Sauce for the Holidays

Holidays mean traditions, and for me, Thanksgiving would not be Thanksgiving without homemade cranberry sauce.  This year, that means that I had to make my cranberry sauce early so it would be ready to pack in my suitcase later in the week. I plan to take it on a plane with me to share with our dear friends in Germany.  Am I crazy?  Well, maybe a little bit, but after you make this super easy recipe, you may never go back to serving the canned stuff again.  I hope this sauce will become a tradition for your family too!

The sauce keeps well in the fridge for at least a week.  You’ll hope there will be some left over because I promise that a sandwich made with this sauce, some cream cheese, and leftover turkey is truly divine!

It is as easy as this:

Pour the water and sugar into a medium to large saucepan over medium high heat.

Bring the mixture to a rolling boil while stirring occasionally to make sure all of the sugar dissolves.

Cranberries

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Carefully add the cranberries.  The skins will begin to pop almost immediately.

Turn the heat down a little so the mixture is at a low boil for 11-12 minutes. Stir the sauce intermittently, making sure the sauce does not boil over.

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Turn off the heat and allow the sauce to cool to room temperature.

The sauce continues to thicken as it cools.  Place the finished sauce in your refrigerator until you are ready to use it.  It will easily keep for over a week if stored in the in the fridge.

finished sauce

Easy Cranberry Sauce

  • Servings: Yields about 4 cups
  • Difficulty: Very Easy
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Ingredients:

  • 1 1/2 cups water
  • 1 1/2 cups sugar (10.5 oz. by weight)
  • 4 cups fresh or frozen cranberries, picked through to remove any bad berries (about 1 lb. or 454 grams)

Directions:

  1. Put water and sugar in a medium to large sauce pan and bring to a rolling boil, stirring occasionally to make sure the sugar fully dissolves.
  2. Carefully add the cranberries, and reduce the heat to medium.  The skins will begin to break almost immediately.  Stir occasionally and continue to cook for 11-12 minutes*.  (It is important to watch the sauce to make sure it does not boil over.)
  3. Allow the sauce to cool on the stove until room temperature.  It will continue to thicken as it cools.

Store in the refrigerator for up to a week.

*Cook for an extra two minutes if the cranberries were frozen.

A Few Notes:

Cranberry sauce goes well with ham as well as turkey.  I make this sauce for Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Easter.  Freeze a few extra berries during the holidays so you can make this sauce during other times of the year.

 

 

Easy Applesauce in a Crock Pot or Slow Cooker

Since I grew up in the state of Washington, I cannot help but think of apples when I think of fall.  During my childhood, the change of weather from summer to cool and crisp days meant that apple treats would soon be on their way.  My siblings and I collected apples from the trees in our yard and brought them to my mother as a subtle suggestion. She received them warmly and made pies, apple crisp, and heavenly cinnamon apple sauce.

My mother always made her applesauce in a dutch oven on the stove, which I also did for many years.  This method required remembering to check on the apples intermittently over a long period of time in order to stir them and to make sure the liquid in the pot had not completely evaporated.

This year I decided to see if I could simplify the process by using my slow cooker instead. Needless to say, it turned out great!  I almost felt guilty about how easy it was. Here is what I did:

apple

1.  Quarter and core apples (I use several varieties) and place in your crock pot.  The number of apples will vary depending on the capacity of your slow cooker.

2.  Add 3/4 cup of water, 1 tsp. lemon juice, and  3-4 cinnamon sticks to the apples.

3.  Put on the lid and turn your slow cooker to HIGH for 4 1/2 to 5 hours.  Do your laundry, read some books to your kids, or take a nap.  When you wake up, your house will smell like fall, and your family and friends will think you spent all day in the kitchen.

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4.  Turn off the cooker, and gently spoon small portions of the cooked apple mixture into a food mill fitted with the fine disk and placed over a bowl.  Remove and discard the cinnamon sticks as you come across them.  Turn the crank, and the skins will separate from the sauce.  If the mill seems hard to turn, give it a few turns in the opposite direction before resuming.

masher

5.  Wait for the applesauce to cool before placing in freezer containers or your fridge. The sauce will keep up to a week in the refrigerator or for several months in the freezer.  I don’t add any sugar to my sauce, but you can add a little brown sugar at the end if you feel it is too tart.  The flavor and tartness can vary quite a bit, depending on the types of apples you use.

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A Few Notes:

If you like your applesauce to be very light in color, peel the apples before cooking them.  The skins impart some color to the sauce.  If you do not have a food mill, you can use a potato masher instead.  Just be sure to PEEL, quarter, and core the apples before cooking.  Then mash the cooked apples to the consistency you like.

Easy Applesauce in a Crock Pot

  • Difficulty: easy
  • Print

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Ingredients:  

  • Several pounds of apples (various types), cored and quartered
  • 3/4 c. water
  • 1 tsp. lemon juice
  • 3-4 cinnamon sticks

Add all ingredients to a slow cooker, cover, and turn to HIGH for 4 1/2 to 5 hours. When the apples have cooked down, turn off the cooker. Place a food mill which has been fitted with the fine disk over a bowl. Slowly spoon in the cooked apples and turn the crank to push the pulp into the bowl below. Remove and discard the cinnamon sticks as you come across them. Every once in a while, turn the crank in the opposite direction to scape the peels away from the disk.

Stir in a little brown sugar if you think the sauce is too tart. Allow to cool to room temperature. Place in the refrigerator for up to a week or store in containers in the freezer for several months.

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