Traditional Cranberry Sauce

Traditional Cranberry Sauce

Ingredients:

1 cup sugar
1 cup water
4 cups (1 12-oz package) fresh or frozen cranberries

Directions:

Place the cranberries in a colander and rinse them. Pick out and discard any damaged or bruised cranberries. Put the water and sugar in a medium saucepan on high heat and bring to a boil. Stir to dissolve the sugar.

Add the cranberries to the pot and return to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer for 10 minutes or until most of the cranberries have burst.

Once the cranberries have burst you can leave the cranberry sauce as is, or dress it up with other ingredients. We like to mix in a half a cup of chopped pecans with a few strips of orange zest. Some people like adding raisins or currants, or even blueberries for added sweetness. You can also add holiday spices such as cinnamon, nutmeg, or allspice.

Remove the pot from heat. Let cool completely at room temperature, then transfer to a bowl to chill in the refrigerator. Note that the cranberry sauce will continue to thicken as it cools.

Creamy Vanilla Sweet Potatoes

Creamy Vanilla Sweet Potatoes

Ingredients:

4 medium sweet potatoes

canola oil

2 ounces cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup butter softened

1/4 cup real maple syrup

1 tablespoon Nielsen-Massey Tahitian Pure Vanilla Extract

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

5 strips bacon, crisp-cooked and crumbled



Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Wash sweet potatoes and lightly coat skins with canola oil.

Pierce each potato several times with a fork, place the potatoes on a foil-lined baking sheet.

Bake for one hour or until fork-tender.

Cut the hot potatoes into halves. Scoop the pulp into a mixing bowl, discarding the skins.

Beat at medium speed for one minute using an electric mixer.

Add cream cheese, butter, syrup, vanilla extract, salt and pepper. Whip until creamy.

Spoon whipped potatoes into six ramekins coated with nonstick cooking spray and top with the bacon. Place ramekins on a baking sheet.

Bake in a preheated 375 F oven for five to eight minutes or until heated through. Alternatively, they may be reheated in a microwave.