Simple, easy homemade cranberry sauce makes a holiday feast complete

Katie Nixon, Nashville Tennessean
·2 min read

Turkey, stuffing and mashed potatoes... stars of any holiday plate right?

Wrong.

This may be controversial, but my favorite dish at the holiday table has to be the cranberry - the star of the show in my opinion.

Now, my Mamaw's oven roasted turkey does not need cranberry sauce - dry turkey does not come from that kitchen - but cranberry sauce complements it.

I mean, can you really eat mashed potatoes without gravy or pumpkin pie without whipped cream?

I didn't think so.

Cranberries are equally as important to the plate as gravy and whipped cream.

You may be reading this and thinking, "I'm not buying what you're selling".

That's absolutely fine. However, it's possible you're skeptical because you've never had home-cooked cranberry sauce.

And there's nothing wrong with that.

I grew up eating cranberry sauce from a can and always went back for seconds and thirds - you cannot go wrong with the can, it's great.

But my mom does make a mean homemade cranberry sauce.

It's sweet, tarte and looks beautiful on the plate.

Plus when you inevitably hit the stores a little late - speaking from experience, last-minute shopper right here - and the cans are gone, you can run over to the produce or freezer aisles, snag some whole cranberries and save the day.

You'll need a few ingredients for the whole cranberry sauce recipe, though most you probably have around the house including:

  • 3 cups cranberries, if frozen thaw cranberries before use

  • 1/2 tsp lemon juice (optional)

  • 1/2 cup white sugar

  • 1/2 cup brown sugar

  • 1 cup water

Bring the water and sugar mixture to a boil in a saucepan. Add the cranberries and return the sauce to a boil.

Reduce the heat and boil for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally to keep the cranberries from burning on the bottom of the pan. Add the lemon juice.

Once the sauce has finished cooking pour it into a bowl and cool completely at room temperature before placing in the refrigerator.

Now serve and enjoy alongside that holiday turkey or ham.

Katie Nixon can be reached at knixon@gannett.com or (615) 517-1285.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Simple, easy homemade cranberry sauce makes a holiday feast complete