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If you listen to any thing I say, please- please don’t buy the already made cranberry sauce. It is so simple to make and the homemade version is extremely delicious.

Every year I buy fresh cranberries and every year while I cook them, I think why people buy the canned or the bottled version. It is one of the simplest things to make in the Thanksgiving dinner.

I have made all sorts in the past few years- including a cranberry relish, salsa. This year I wanted to come up with something on my own and not follow a recipe.

Since I have been on an apple and orange kick- that are the flavors I used. I cooked a bag of fresh cranberries with apple cider and orange juice. I added orange zest, a cinnamon stick and some cloves. I cooked the berries till they popped and became soft- it takes all of 20 minutes and you can make this in advance and freeze it till the dinner. I finished it off with maple syrup. The apple chunks in the sauce are delicious and adds great texture.

It was delicious. We had it on top of some pork chops (I have frozen the rest for Thanksgiving). Please make this instead of buying the canned version and if you do – let me know.

• 12 ounces fresh cranberries
• 1½ cups apple cider
• ½ cup orange juice
• 2 teaspoons orange zest
• 1 large cinnamon stick
• 3 cloves
• ¾ cup maple syrup
• 1 large honey crisp apple, cut into ½ inch pieces

In a medium saucepan, add the cranberries, apple cider, orange juice, orange zest, cinnamon stick and the cloves. Bring to a boil and lower the heat to a simmer. Cook for 5-10 minutes or till the berries begin to break down. Add the maple syrup and cook on medium high or till the sauce begins to thicken and the berries have disintegrated. Add the cut up apple and cook for another 5 minutes. Let cool. This can be frozen till the day before Thanksgiving. Thaw it in the fridge. Good for 6-8 people.