As Thanksgiving rolls around, the people of America are looking frantically through old family recipes and new cookbooks, racking their brains for what to make for a perfect Thanksgiving meal. Over the years, I have watched my own family cook delicious meals, but I also have realized that our feasts are not always very healthy. Considering the tons of added sugar, butter, and cream, not to mention all of the pies we have for dessert, I began to think that we needed a healthier Thanksgiving.

To start the new movement, I decided on a simple dish, cranberry sauce. A typical recipe for cranberry sauce that serves between four and eight people has two cups of sugar! I found a recipe for cranberry pear sauce on wholeliving.com that was easy, delicious, and much healthier. Instead of two cups of sugar, this recipe has only 2/3 of a cup.

However, just because there is less sugar, this does not mean the recipe is any less sweet. The addition of pears and dried cherries to the traditional cranberry sauce contributed natural sugars to the recipe to create the perfect balance of sweet and sour. Cranberries are one of the most beneficial super-foods for your body, because they contain antioxidants, vitamin C, and fiber, and help fight diseases. With this recipe, your Thanksgiving cranberry sauce can outshine the other dishes with its great taste and great health benefits! I just might get a start on my own family’s Thanksgiving traditions. Enjoy!

Cranberry-Pear Sauce

Ingredients:

1 bag (12 oz.) of fresh cranberries

3 ripe Bartlett pears, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch chunks

2/3 cup of sugar

1/2 cup of dried cherries

1/2 cup of water

Instructions:

1. In a medium-sized, heavy-bottom, non-aluminum saucepan, combine the cranberries, pears, sugar, dried cherries, and water.
2. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium heat.
3. Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook while stirring frequently, until the berries have popped and are tender, about 15 minutes.
4. Allow the sauce to cool to room temperature. Cover and refrigerate until chilled.

Yield: 4 cups

Serving: 1/2 cup

My Changes/Info for the Recipe:

1. I used dried mixed berries along with the dried cherries. This really enhanced the general flavor and I enjoyed tasting the different kinds of berries within the sauce.
2. Using frozen cranberries instead of fresh cranberries makes no difference in the taste.
3. Since I used a smaller pan, it took about 45 minutes to cook.