Apple Cranberry Sauce

This bright, piquant accompaniment to Autumn and Winter feasting has all the delight of traditional cranberry sauce for less- less sugar and it's less expensive to make, especially if you're using organic cranberries. The natural sugars in the apples balance the tang of the cranberries without diminishing the distinctive cranberry flavor.

-Alan Wagener

• 2 cups cranberries
• 2-4 cups apples, cored and cut into 1/2 inch chunks
• 1 orange (organically grown if possible), with peel
• 2 Tbsp. maple syrup (to start)
• 2 Tbsp. honey (to start)
• 1/8 cup sugar (to start)

Apples- Cortlands work especially well, but any variety will do. The more apples you use, and the sweeter they are, the less sweetening you will need. We like the maximum amount of apples (or even more), but if you're feeling especially traditional, you may want to go with the 1:1 ratio.

Oranges- The peel adds a lot of flavor, but non-organic oranges are dyed and often treated with fungicide, so we would probably forgo the peel if we couldn't find organic oranges. Peel the orange and cut it into chunks on a plate (to catch the juice), removing seeds. Save 1/2 the peel and cut it into large (1 inch+) chunks.

Put everything into a pot (corningware, glass, enamel, or stainless steel are best) and heat at medium temp., stirring frequently.

When the cranberries have all popped, taste it to adjust the sweetening- add more maple syrup and/or honey to taste.

Serve warm or cold. Leave the orange peel in. The longer it's in there, the more its flavor will spread throughout the sauce. Also, while most people will not want to eat the chunks of peel, some will find it delicious- like marmelade.