Cranberry Sauce - From Bog to Table

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I Made this Lens for Charity

Come along with me to Maine, where my recipe for Cranberry Sauce starts with a stop at a Cranberry Bog where berries are gathered, sorted with an antique Cranberry sorter, taken home to my kitchen, where they were made into delicious all-natural, healthy Cranberry Sauce...2 years in a row!  Delight in the delicious flavor of Cranberries made not with sugar, but with...well, let me not get ahead of myself and spoil the fun, lets go!

But before we go, I am entering this "Cranberry Sauce - From Bog to Table" lens into the Squidoo Thanksgiving Cookoff (for Charity). If it gets selected, the charity I support gets $1000.  I hope you enjoy -- and if you do, don't be shy, spread the word by a twitter tweet, or whatever way you like! 

Cranberries are not only delicious, but healthy... 

Imagine a little red berry that may help fight/prevent cancer, age-related diseases like loss of memory, heart disease, ulcers, and even cavities. Sound to good to be true? These are among the health benefits attributed to the Cranberry...that delicious side dish on your Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner table. Click here to read more, then come back so we can travel to Maine, and get the main ingredient for our Cranberry Sauce.



Low-Bush Cranberry, Alaska




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Cranberry Bog 

As we were traveling the roads of Maine a couple of years ago, just driving wherever the road would take us, we saw this patch of red, and stopped to take a closer look. It was there that we met a husband and wife who operated a small cranberry farm. They had just finished harvesting large, plump cranberries from a few bogs on their land. This picture is after harvesting.

Map a Route to the Cranberry Bog 

Here is the location of the County Road Cranberry Bogs that we discovered during our travels, if you use the zoom features, you should be able to see the bogs. You zoom by using the "plus" sign in the upper left corner, and can move the map around by putting the curser on the map, holding down the button on your mouse, "moving" the map, or use the arrows in the upper left corner.

Antique Cranberry Sorter 

The owners of the farm, realizing that we were interested in how they processed the berries, took us inside to a room where they showed us their remarkable antique cranberry sorter. They have used it for many, many years to sort all of their berries...picking the bad berries from the batch one by one, sorting out the good into portions. They were in the process of sorting berries when we were there, the same way they have done for so very many years.

Another View of Cranberry Sorter 

Here is another angle on the same sorter, we really appreciated their kindness in letting us take a look at this, and then we took a short tour of the rest of this old family owned and operated cranberry farm.

Big Bag of Freshly Sorted Cranberries 

And here is the large bag of very large, plump cranberries, that we purchased from our new-found friends...each about twice the size of any fresh berries I've picked up from our local supermarket. They traveled well for the rest of the trip, and were put in the freezer just as you see them here in this bag as soon as we got to our home in NJ, waiting for Thanksgiving, which was only a few weeks away. They freeze well, and provided cranberry sauce for 2 Thanksgiving and 1 Christmas family gathering.

Step One - Preparing the Cranberries 

It's as easy as can be to make Cranberry Sauce, we'll go step by step. First, check the berries you plan to cook for any bad berries or foreign material, you may want to do this in a colander, give them a good rinsing to remove any dust.

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Step Two - Getting Ready to Cook 

Take out your favorite pot...I have used Farberware for years. Obviously, you want a pot that is big enough to hold the amount of berries you are going to cook.

Add the berries, and just enough water to cook them down, which doesn't take long. The water you add is going to be part of the sauce, I don't cover the berries with water, as I don't want the sauce to be too thin.

Farberware Classic Stainless Steel 15-Piece Cookware Set

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Step Three - Cooking the Berries 

Bring the water and berries to a boil, and then adjust to a medium boil. One of the fun things about cooking cranberries is hearing them "pop, pop, pop" as they burst during the cooking process. You won't be cooking them long, so stay with them, stirring occasionally. Oh, and be aware that we keep everything in the sauce, this recipe is for whole-berry cranberry sauce.

There are different ways to cook cranberries, I can only share mine, and you can find other recipes here on Squidoo or in this recipe book.

Cranberry Cooking for All Seasons

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Step Four - Sweetening the Sauce 

Another place we love to visit is Lancaster, PA, and when we do, we stop at a farm along the way, or visit Millers where they sell organic and natural foods...all are Amish owned. There I purchase Wildflower Honey made right there in Lancaster. This is what I use to sweeten my Cranberry Sauce, adding a unique flavor to it...and everyone seems to love it!

I can't tell you exactly how much to use, it depends upon how many berries you use, and how sour or tart the berries are. A general idea - if you use 5 cups of berries, start with 1/2 - 1 cup of honey. Add, stir, and taste, then add more if needed, until it tastes just a bit too sweet, because when the sauce cools, that tart flavor comes out more..cranberries are naturally quite sour.

Step Five - Is it done yet? 

Once the berries have cooked down, and you like the flavor, your done cooking. It shouldn't take more than 20-30 minutes depending upon cooking temperature.

It's now time to decide whether you are going to can your sauce, or cool the cranberry sauce in the refigerator to serve for a meal...I like to make mine the day before it will be served so it is nice and cold.

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Step Six - Serving your Cranberry Sauce 

I put my sauce in clear, glass serving or storage bowls so that the beautiful color of the berries shows through, then cover with plastic if they do not have a lid, and put in the refrigerator until ready to serve. The sauce becomes more firm as it cools, more the consistency you would expect of Whole Cranberry Sauce, and will be ready to serve when you are ready to eat.

Enjoy!

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Video - How to Make Cranberry Sauce 

In this video, they use brown sugar, orange juice, and even port wine! But what I liked most is that this will give you a visual of what I've been explaining in words. Enjoy.

Cranberry Sauce Recipe | Thanksgiving Dinner

How to make the Best Cranberry Sauce with Port Wine Recipe for Thanksgiving or Christmas Turkey Dinner. Cranberry Sauce is one of the most important side dishes for your Holiday Turkey dinner. If you are like me, I usually buy a can of cranberries but this year I was shown how to make an amazing Port Wine Cranberry sauce and it was really easy! Canadian, American Thanksgiving and the Christmas Holidays are just around the corner. You can make this sauce he night before and refrigerate in your serving dish. And of course you will have some Port left over for your guests after dinner.

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Fun and Fancy Cranberry Items

Now that you have learned how to make Cranberry Sauce, here are a few fun Cranberry items that you might enjoy.

Dried Cranberries - a Tasty Treat 

Dried Cranberries have become a popular snack over the past several years. Treated right, they will retain the antioxidants that are so good for you.

Traverse Bay Dried Cranberries, 4-Pound Box

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Rustic Cranberry Tableware 

Rustic Cranberry Dinnerware Collection

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Cranberry Tea and Kettle 

Cranberry Tea is delicious and if brewed just right, good for you! You never want to "heat the life out of" your herbal teas, too much heat may destroy the healing properties. Heat water just to a boil, then pour over herbal tea, in most cases, you do not put tea bags or loose tea into boiling water.

Even eBay Likes Cranberries! 

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A Very Big LOTD Thank You! 

Remembering our Soldiers and their Families

Thank you so much, Squidoo, and anyone involved in this lens becoming Lens of the Day. Thank you for your visits and comments. Thank you for the blessings, "Squid Angels", that I see in the comments.

Most of all, thank you, Squidoo, for sending $1000 to Soldier's Angels, to benefit our men and women in the military and their families. This is even more meaningful to me as we remember Veterans Day this coming Wednesday. Remembering our troops overseas, at home, and thinking of those affected at Fort Hood, Texas, and remembering the wonderful service of our Veterans.

Favorite Thanksgiving Recipes Site 

You'll find some yummy recipes here done by a wonderful group of women here on Squidoo called the RocketMoms.

About Me 

Lensmaster happynutritionist has been a member since May 13 2006, has rated 320 lenses, favorited 19, and has created 58 lenses from scratch. Claudia Meydrech donates their royalties to Soldiers Angels. This member's top-ranked page is "Cranberry Sauce - From Bog to Table". See all my lenses

Say hello, share your favorite holiday side dish if you like! 

What an exciting day this November 9th is turning out to be...thank you for your comments, and thank you, Squid Angels, for your blessings!

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Cranberries and Whitewash Art Print 

 

by happynutritionist

This recipe for Cranberry Sauce brings together ingredients from two vacation locations into one delicious dish! I hope you will enjoy. To get to kn... (more)
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