Who has grown up eating the canned cranberry sauce as a child? 

My grandmother who slide out that jelly on Thanksgiving day right before the meal was served and I would grimace. 

I would softly pray that I wouldn’t be made to eat to eat that mystery red stuff. Skipping right over it, I would rather put a slab of butter in my mouth than to pretend to like whatever that giggly stuff held inside its shiny exterior.

When I married, I vowed to never buy canned cranberries for my thanksgiving day spread. I honestly don’t remember ever caving in, but I may have for the sake of a family member or two in the early years.

Two years ago we had invited over 25 young service members to share our home and table in celebration. I knew that some were looking for tastes of home and others were up for something new. I planned to bring that something new right to their plates.

I searched and tweaked recipes until I finally found something that not only my palate agreed with, but that I believe that my pickiest eater aka husband would enjoy with his mashed potatoes and turkey.

Behold, I discovered Orange Bourbon Cranberry Sauce. This absolutely delicious side or dressing, depending on how you eat it, found its way to my top favorite holiday food items. Not to mention that it makes great leftover to put atop of waffles or toast.

I hope that you enjoy this delicious treat as much I do.

Orange Bourbon Cranberry Sauce

24 oz. of fresh cranberries

1/3-2/3 cup of white sugar (I use about 1/3 cup of the baking Truvia)

1 cup brown sugar

3/4 cup of freshly squeezed orange juice

3/4 cup of water

1-3 tablespoon of Bourbon to taste

Everything goes into a sauce pan and cupped on medium for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Continue cooking until the cranberries have popped. Remove from heat and serve within 15 minutes. You can refrigerate the leftovers for up to a week.

If you missed other posts from this series, we invite you to follow here >>>November 2018 Series Introduction