EPISODE 86

A little while back, I worked for a lovely lady who runs a website on cancer fighting foods. She’s a big fan of cranberries, since scientists believe that their compounds produce good gut bacteria and fight the bad. Cranberry fibers ferment into fatty acids in the gut, enrich the lining, and prevent toxins from being reabsorbed into your blood. In order to obtain maximum goodness from the red berries, cook them for as little time as possible. That’s why this sauce comes together—start to finish—in around 10 minutes. I’m using maple syrup to sweeten the notoriously sour berries, but feel free to use agave, honey, or sugar. The orange juice provides natural sugar as well, but, if you need to add more sweetener, you can do that as well. I’d also like to say that, while it’s not in the spirit of cancer fighting foods, a tablespoon of two of orange liquor (added at the end) would be very festive.

Ingredients

• 2 cups cranberries (fresh or frozen)
• 1 large orange, juice (around ½ cup)
• ¼ cup maple syrup
• ½ teaspoon cinnamon

Instructions

Combine all ingredients in a pot, cover, and turn the heat on high. Once this comes to a boil, reduce the heat to low, and cook (still covered) for 2 minutes. Turn the heat off and leave to cool. If you want a smoother sauce, feel free to pour the mixture into a blender or pass through a food mill. It’s important to do this which the sauce is still hot because, as it cools, the pectin in the cranberries will cause the sauce to thicken significantly and blending will become more of an issue. Enjoy at any temperature at a holiday feast, swirled into morning porridge, or atop yogurt or granola.

Enjoy!