Orange Zest Cranberry Sauce Recipe

I love whole cranberry sauce and found some ready-made I really like. Trader Joe's makes a whole cranberry sauce with orange zest, but it's a bit sweeter than I prefer for my no-sugar diet. This year I made my own cranberry sauce following a recipe from PCRM (Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine).

PCRM promotes a personal responsibility approach to medicine starting with a plant-based diet. Although I don't agree with every detail of the PCRM recommended diet, I am behind their goal of dramatically changing the way doctors treat chronic diseases such as diabetes, heart disease, obesity, and cancer. PCRM puts prevention over pills and other medical interventions, encouraging doctors to empower their patients to take control of their own health.

With a few tweaks from the original PCRM recipe, I made this cranberry sauce for Thanksgiving and will likely repeat it for Christmas dinner. I squeezed juice from the orange I grated for the zest rather than use orange juice concentrate, which I find too processed. It turned out perfect.

A package of fresh cranberries measures about 4 cups—just right for the recipe.

The cranberry sauce cooked while I made the Blueberry Pie for Thanksgiving.

Orange Zest Cranberry Sauce

from Inspired by PCRM

yield 10 - 12 servings

category Side Dish

cuisine Vegan

ingredients

4 C fresh or frozen cranberries

1 C fresh squeezed orange juice

1 ripe pear, finely chopped

1 medium apple, finely chopped

1/2 tsp cinnamon

2 tsp grated orange peel

1/4 - 1/2 raw sugar (evaporated cane juice or coconut sugar)

directions

1. Combine cranberries, orange juice, pear, apple, cinnamon and orange zest in a sucepan over medium heat.

2. Bring to a simmer and cook uncovered for about 20 minutes. The cranberries will begin to pop and the mixture will thicken.

3. Add sugar to taste. Careful not to over sweeten. The sauce will get sweeter tasting as the flavors marry.

4. Serve hot or cold.

Do you enjoy cranberry sauce? If so... whole or jellied?