What's in Cranbery Sauce?

What's in Cranberry Sauce?

Sugar, sugar, and more sugar.

If you buy the traditional Ocean Spray Jellied Cranberry Sauce you will be eating high fructose corn syrup AND corn syrup. That ends up being 76% sugar as two out of the four ingredients are sugar.

Here's some interesting information about sugar...

(I won't go into detail about the dense information I recently absorbed about the difference between sucrose, fructose, high fructose corn syrup, etc.)

*Sugar can suppress the immune system. 

*Sugar contributes to a weakened defense against bacterial infection.

*Sugar interferes with absorption of calcium.

 

With winter on its way...sugar is the last thing your immune system needs! BUT I love my cranberry sauce! So what's a girl to do? Here are a couple options...

 

Homemade Cranberry sauce can be super simple to make and although it still contains sugar, you can control the amount as well as omit all the artificial ingredients most canned products contain.

Here is my Mum & Dad's super simple Cranberry Sauce Recipe

1 bag of fresh cranberries

1 cup water

1 cup sugar (although I suggest using less or experimenting with maple sugar)

lemon peel (optional)

pinch of nutmeg or cinnamon (optional)

Melt the sugar in the water and then add cranberries, lemon peel and spices. Bring to a boil and immediately lower the heat to simmer. Cranberries will pop as they cook. Once they all pop - pour into a container to cool and then refrigerate it. 

My Mum also loves to make a Cranberry Compote, but I'll save that for another post.

 

You can also try Wildtree's Apple Cranberry Jam or Cranberry Jalapeno Jelly instead!

It still has sugar - but it's evaporated cane juice instead of hfcs. I use the Jam for cooking chicken, pork, mixing in with rice or just as a plan old accompaniment to a traditional turkey dinner.  Order your Cranberry Jams & Jellies while you can at www.jenwarr.mywildtree.com. They are available until December 31st and then not again until next fall.