By Kathryn Reed

When people ask for copies of the recipe you know it’s a keeper.

Before Thanksgiving my friend Ellie shared her family cranberry recipe with me. But it wasn’t until the weekend before last that I made it for some friends. Oh, my, it’s super delicious.

It’s good as a side. I also ate it with crackers. It goes great with Cabernet – which makes sense since red wine is one of the main ingredients.

Ellie suggests putting it on vanilla ice cream or pineapple sherbet. Next time I’m definitely saving some for ice cream.

I also might cut back on the sugar a wee bit.

Below is her recipe. I substituted 1 teaspoon of orange juice for the orange extract because I didn’t have the extract. I used Zinfandel because that’s what I felt like drinking.

According to Ellie, the mixture freezes well.

Spiced Cranberry Sauce with Red Wine

¾ C Zinfandel or Cabernet

1 C sugar

1 C (packed) brown sugar

½ tsp ground allspice

½ tsp ground cinnamon

¼ teaspoon orange extract

12 ounce bag fresh cranberries

Combine all ingredients except cranberries in a medium sauce pan. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring until sugar dissolves. Reduce heat and simmer for about 10 minutes. Add cranberries and cook over medium heat until berries burst.

Cool, transfer sauce to a medium bowl. Cover and refrigerate until cold.