Spiced Cranberry Sauce

Spiced Cranberry Sauce

Serves 8 (makes 41/2 cups)
Prep: 5 minutes
Cook: about 12 minutes
Cool: 25 to 30 minutes

Tradition usually does not allow you to mess with the cranberry sauce. I know this from experience, as my requests to prepare a cranberry relish, gelatin salad or homemade sauce have been met with puzzlement. You can hear people thinking, "Why would anyone not want to serve cranberry sauce straight from the can? After all, it comes in both smooth and chunky." Well, the answer is that it's nice to cook fresh cranberries. They only come into season during the holidays, and it's fun to let your kids see them pop in the pan. This version is enlivened with cinnamon, nutmeg and allspice. And it is to die for spooned onto a turkey sandwich.

2 cups sugar
2 cups water
2 packages (12 ounces each) fresh cranberries, rinsed and picked over
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg

¼ teaspoon ground allspice
Place the sugar and water in a medium-size saucepan over medium heat and stir until the sugar dissolves, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the cranberries, cinnamon, nutmeg and allspice and cook, stirring until the cranberries pop, 10 to 12 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and let the cranberry sauce cool to room temperature before serving, 25 to 30 minutes.

Want an orange and cranberry sauce? Substitute orange juice for the water and add a teaspoon of grated orange zest along with the cranberries. Omit the spices.
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Big batch: You can double this recipe; cook the cranberry sauce in a large saucepan.