Grandma's cranberry sauce

To prepare the cranberry sauce, pour the orange juice and sugar into a medium saucepan. In my experience, I recommend dissolving the sugar in the juice over a medium heat, stirring occasionally. If the heat is too high, the sugar can burn and develop a bitter taste.

When the sugar is completely dissolved, add the cranberries and the zest of the orange. Make sure that you only grate the orange layer of zest, as the white underneath is very bitter.

Increase the heat and bring to the boil. As soon as it boils, reduce the heat and simmer the sauce for 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the cranberries burst open and the sauce thickens.

Remove the sauce from the heat and leave to cool completely. It will thicken even more over time. You can prepare the sauce up to 1 week in advance and store it in the fridge.

In my experience, this fruity cranberry sauce goes perfectly with traditional Christmas turkey, but also with duck or pork. The fresh, berry flavor will lighten up any heavy festive meal and put a smile on your guests' faces!