Keep in Mind for Thanksgiving

It's hard to think about Thanksgiving when spring is only a week away, but keep these cranberry sauce recipes in mind for your next Thanksgiving dinner. It's only 8 months away! Here are two great cranberry sauce recipes to keep on hand for the future.

Apple and Cranberry Sauce with Orange and Crystallized Ginger

Ingredients:

4 medium Gala apples, peeled, cored, quartered, and sliced
1 (12 oz) package fresh cranberries
5 tbsp. brown sugar (or more to taste)
1 tsp. grated orange zest
1/4 cup fresh orange juice
1/4 cup chopped crystallized ginger

Directions:

Place all of the apple pieces and cranberries in a large bowl and stir in brown sugar and orange zest.

Pour orange juice into the bottom of a large slow cooker and add the apple mixture.

Cover and turn on the slow cooker. Cook on low heat setting for about 8 hours, stirring occasionally, and breaking up the apple slices and cranberries with a wooden spoon as they soften.

Stir in crystallized ginger. Taste and add an additional brown sugar, if you find the sauce to be too tart.

Serve warm or at room temperature.

Source: Cookin Canuck. You can find it here.

Notes: Tasty stuff...and it always adds a nice touch to have homemade cranberry sauce instead of canned.

Slow Cooker Cranberry Sauce

Ingredients:

1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
1/4 tsp. cinanmon
1/2 cup orange juice
1/2 cup water
Ground ginger, to taste, optional
Fresh cranberries (12 oz)

Directions:

Combine all ingredients except the cranberries in a slow cooker. Stir well.

Add cranberries and stir to evenly coat.

Heat in the slow cooker on high heat setting for 3 hours, stirring the cranberries every hour.

After three hours on high, mash the cranberries. Continue to heat on high with the lid off for another 45 minutes.

Let cool and transfer to serving dish.

Recipe Notes: You can make this the day before Thanksgiving. It also makes the house smell amazing.