Cranberry sauce recipes: two ideas

Cranberry sauce recipes may be wide and varied, but be sure to make enough for the leftover turkey sandwiches.

It's Tuesday before Thanksgiving, do you know where your cranberries are? It's a good idea to stock up on them today before the rush depletes the shelves as we near the holiday.

Canned vs. whole cranberries on the holiday dinner table persists as an issue of deeply personal taste. Perre Coleman Magness points out in her post on "Cranberry ginger compote," that she prefers a kind of cranberry relish without any ridges from a can. "Personally, I like a sweet, slightly chunky cranberry sauce – I’ll call it more of a compote than a sauce," she writes. "And since I host and cook Thanksgiving, I get to choose. Ginger is a lovely, warming spice that pairs with cranberries beautifully and will also complement the other dishes on your table. Layers of ginger flavor from ginger ale, fresh ginger, and ginger preserve make this a special standout."

Fair enough.

If ginger is too warm for your tastes, pair your cranberry sauce with zest of orange, a classic that we always feature at our Thanksgiving table. Amy Deline says "Fresh cranberry sauce can be as simple as simmering cranberries in water with a bit of sugar or you can get creative incorporating other flavors." She has a very simple recipe for "Cranberry orange sauce" that will appeal to those who like the jellied approach to Thanksgiving cranberries.

To keep the peace, though, you might want to serve both canned cranberries and cranberry sauce. But do get to the store. Time is running out!

Kendra Nordin blogs at Kitchen Report.