To Jell or not to Jell: Dixie’s Cranberry Sauce

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My childhood Thanksgiving memories are filled with many things that still make me smile as turkey day approaches each year: Charlie Brown`s Thanksgiving - I always longed to have the turkey served with a side of popcorn from a ping pong table with the family dog; Macy`s Thanksgiving Day Parade - I still make my wife watch the entire thing with me each year; and jiggly, alien-like cranberry sauce out of a can. My grandmother always served it on a silver platter atop iceberg lettuce. Who knew that's actually what the good silver is reserved for - .99 cents a can cranberry sauce.

Growing up in deep south Mississippi in the 70`s, making cranberry sauce with fresh cranberries was not an option. I was well into adulthood when I discovered that this mythical fruit does exist and that you could make a fresh version of the jellied, straight out-of-the-can sauce I grew up with in my Southern house.

My grandmother made everything from scratch, and she loved food. In today`s food culture, she would have been designated as a “foodie.” We made special trips to Memphis and Tupelo to eat at new and interesting restaurants that were getting out of the box of Southern food. I could order anything I wanted, the only rule being it had to be a dish or food I had never had before. She would have loved driving the family T-Bird down to Big Star to load up on fresh cranberries during the holidays. The recipe I created to use in my restaurant for Thanksgiving and the holiday season was made with her memory in mind and our family Thanksgiving table.

Just for the record - I love all cranberry sauce. I feel strongly that each one has its place at the table. Food should be fun, and you shouldn't feel guilty because you REALLY like cranberry out of a can. There is no shame in that game, folks. Food Made With Love.

Dixie’s Cranberry Sauce

Ingredients

2 bags fresh cranberries (12 oz. each)
2 cups white sugar
1 cup water
1 cup apple cider
1 orange (cut in half)
1 small lemon (cut in half)
2 large cinnamon sticks
1 1/2 slices of peeled ginger
1 teaspoon cloves
1 teaspoon ground allspice

Directions

In a medium pot, add all ingredients. Squeeze juice out of orange and lemon, then add citrus shells into berries. Cover with a lid. Cook slow and low, stirring frequently. I like to bring it to a just boil stage and then turn it down to low. Usually cooks about 45 minutes to 1 hour.

Notes

  • You can adjust sugar to make it as unsweet or sweet as you like for your taste. Just add more or less sugar. Also feel free to use a sugar substitute if you have a family member with dietary restrictions.

  • The cranberry sauce can turn into napalm during the cooking process, so keep the lid on the pot which will ensure that you do not become a helpless burn victim on Thanksgiving Day. Also, it will save you from scrubbing cranberries off the walls in your kitchen well after the Fourth of July.

  • Feel free to serve canned cranberry sauce on the table next to your homemade version, if for no other reason but nostalgia. There are no rules for holiday cooking except that you do what makes you happy, drink the wine and eat ALL the cranberry sauce.