Thanksgiving is a day I look forward to all year. I love spending time with my big, fun, loving family, and this dinner always becomes quite the event, since we always spend it with so many people. This year, my parents and siblings came up to Long Island to be with my mom’s side of the family, which is convenient for Ryan and me since we are just a short ride away in the city. Tomorrow night’s dinner will be just a close family affair… so we’ll be feasting with 70-80 people! Being surrounded with so much love and happiness (and amazing food) gives me so much to be thankful for 🙂

One of my “Florida Tias”- my Aunt Brenda, makes a killer cranberry sauce that has become a staple in our Thanksgiving spread. If you’re looking for something memorable to bring to the table, I’d suggest giving this sauce a shot!

Ingredients:
4 cups ( about 1 1/3 pkgs) fresh cranberries
2 cups sugar
1 cup dried apricots, chopped
1 cup golden raisins
1 cup water
1 cup orange juice
1 tbsp orange zest

Directions:
In a big, heavy pot, combine all ingredients. Stir on medium heat until sugar dissolves. Increase the heat to medium-high and cover the pot. Let the sauce boil, stirring occasionally, until the cranberries pop up (about 8 minutes or so). Technically, you can serve the sauce as is, but we like to run it through the blender to create a jammy applesauce-like consistency. Good luck trying to resist straight up eating this with a spoon.

Happy Thanksgiving!!
Bonus!!
Reserve some of the cranberry fruit compote and place it on top of some Brie for a beautiful and tasty appetizer. You can also wrap the Brie and cranberry sauce in puff pastry and Bake it at 425 for 20 minutes for a festive baked Brie.