Traditional cranberry sauce is a significant source of added sugar, with most recipes and jarred or canned products having between 20 and 25 grams of sugar (that's 5 to 6 teaspoons of sugar!) per 1/4 cup serving.
While a little bit of added sugar is nice to cut the natural tartness of cranberries, this recipe uses a fraction of the sugar found in most recipes (in the form of pure maple syrup) and comes out with just 10 grams of sugar per 1/4 cup serving. It's delicious on turkey or ham and the leftovers are especially good on plain Greek yogurt, homemade pancakes, or added to a bowl of warm oatmeal.
Serves 8.
Ingredients
2 bags (227 g each) fresh cranberries, rinsed
1.5 teaspoons orange zest
Juice from 1 large orange (this should be about 1/2 cup juice)
1/4 cup maple syrup
Directions
Get all of your ingredients ready - rinse the cranberries, zest the orange and juice the orange (make sure to get the zest off the orange before juicing it!).
Combine cranberries, 1 teaspoon orange zest, orange juice and maple syrup in a small saucepan.
Heat over medium-high heat until the mixture begins to boil and bubble, stirring frequently. Reduce heat and simmer over medium-low heat, stirring frequently, until most of the cranberries have burst - about 12 minutes.
If you prefer your cranberry sauce with more whole berries, cook for slightly less time. Remove from heat and cool.
Add remaining 1/2 teaspoon orange zest just before serving.
Makes approximately 2 cups. Serves 8.
Per serving (1/4 cup): 59 calories, 0 g fat, 0 g saturated fat, 15 g carb, 3 g fibre, 10 g sugar, 0 g protein, 2 mg sodium
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All photos and recipes by Michelle Gelok, RD