This is my family’s favorite cranberry sauce.  I should preface that with the fact that before I started serving this particular sauce, my Dad was the only one in the family that actually liked cranberry sauce.  Now we all have to have it every Thanksgiving because skipping this sauce would be like skipping the turkey–it’s inconceivable.

Tart & sweet with a vibrant splash of orange flavor & the nutty crunch from toasted pecans…it is divine.  And if you think that only adults with distinguished palates would enjoy it, then you haven’ t seen my three year old nephew dipping every piece of his turkey in it and refusing to eat the turkey any other way.

Do you serve cranberry sauce with your Thanksgiving dinner?  What is your favorite way to prepare it?

Killer Cranberry Sauce

1 navel orange
1 1/2 c sugar
1/2 t grated fresh ginger
4 c cranberries
1/2 c toasted pecans, chopped*

Grate the orange peel from the orange and put into a large saucepan.  Juice the orange and add the juice to the pan along with the sugar and ginger.  Stir & simmer over medium heat until sugar is dissolved.  Add cranberries and cook until they pop & the mixture thickens–about five to ten minutes.  Cool and store in the refrigerator.  Stir in pecans just before serving.  Serve cold.

*To toast the pecans, place them on a microwave-safe plate in a single layer.  Microwave for one minute, stir, then zap for another minute or until fragrant.