Maureen Hefti

Spiced Cranberry Pear Sauce

This cranberry sauce is is wonderful served either warm or cold with Thanksgiving dinner, and a heaping spoonful is delicious in breakfast oatmeal. We also use it for cranberry cobbler, and as an alternative to jam in kolachkes.

3 cups or 12 oz. cranberries fresh or frozen
2 oranges, zested and juiced
¾ cup sugar
½ c honey
1 star anise
1 cinnamon stick (try Mexican canela)
2 Bosc or Anjou pears, peeled and cut into cubes

Rinse and sort cranberries if using fresh. Peel and cut pears into ½ inch cubes. In skillet over high heat, wisk orange zest, orange juice, and honey. Add star anise, cinnamon stick, and cranberries; bring to a boil. Lower to medium high heat and stir, cooking until most of the cranberries pop. If the cranberries are tender, but resist popping, encourage them to burst using a potato masher or the back of a large spoon. Reduce heat to medium; add pears and cook until tender. Serve warm, or prepare ahead and serve chilled.
Makes 4 cups

My family has been enjoying this cranberry sauce since the November 2002 issue of Sunset. We have adapted it to suit our taste; tampering with ingredients and changing the preparation.