Hayley's Homemade Cranberry Sauce
I would eat homemade cranberry sauce year-round if I could. Saying that - I love a good condiment especially at Christmas. But I would never be without this beautiful cranberry sauce made by my sister. There is nothing I look forward to more than putting together a tray of sandwiches from all the delicious Christmas leftovers for boxing day lunch. It's hard to believe that Hayley's homemade cranberry sauce could get any better than it's place at the Christmas dinner table. But this sandwich would be a shadow of itself without it!This recipe almost fills a 1500g/53oz Jar and it is enough to see you right through the festive season. You can also freeze any excess. Usually we make twice the amount but Christnas 2020 is set to be a smaller affair.
Ingredients
- 500 g cranberries I couldn't get my hands on fresh cranberries this year so I have used frozen which work just as well.
- 2 cinnamon sticks
- 1 star anise
- 3 cloves
- 150 - 200 g caster sugar I used 150g as I like it to still be a little sharp. If you prefer a sweeter taste then the additional sugar should do the job.
- 400 ml of red wine
- 1 orange
Instructions
- Slice your orange into five. The middle three slices should be thick, these will go into the pan. You will need the juice from the two ends.
- In a slightly warmed pan (careful it's not hot as your sugar will burn) add your cinnamon sticks star anise and clothes and allow them to warm for 30 seconds
- Add your sugar and red wine. Give the pan a good stir until the sugar has dissolved
- Squeeze the juice from the two ends of orange into the pan
- Add the three slices of orange to the pan give it a stir and allow to simmer until the liquid has reduced by 50%.
- Remove the orange slices and set aside, then add your cranberries. Give them a stir and return the sliced orange.
- Cook until the mixture becomes thick and all of your cranberries have popped and broken down. This took around 15 minutes for me.
- Remove the orange slices from the pan, they should just be the rinds now as the rest of the orange will of cooked into the sauce. This year I removed the cinnamon sticks as well as I froze my sauce. I didn't bother removing the additional spices.
- Decant the sauce into a sterilise jar or a freezable tub (if you are making ahead). I froze mine in three and kept some in the fridge for the festive build up.If you are making this Christmas week you can store in the fridge for a week.