Sweet Cranberry Sauce

I love cranberries.  They taste like the holidays to me since that's when they're in season and readily available in grocery stores.  I always stock up on the 12-oz bags from the produce department.  So far this year I've tried 2 new recipes that feature cranberries.  Combining some ideas from the flavors I liked about those recipes with the simple recipe for traditional cranberry sauce on the back of the bag of cranberries, I was inspired to create something new.

This cranberry sauce doesn't just feature the flavor of cranberries.  It also features the wonderfully festive taste of cinnamon, and my other favorite winter fruit, oranges.  To save calories, I'm using Trop-50 in this recipe, but you could substitute freshly squeezed orange juice.

You could eat this sauce with your Thanksgiving turkey, but I plan on using it as a waffle topping, spreading it on toast and mixing it in Greek yogurt.  The best part?  One batch makes about 2.5 cups, and there are only 241 calories in the entire batch! Yes, feel free to indulge your taste buds.

Sweet Cranberry Sauce

Ingredients:
1 12-oz bag cranberries
1 c Splenda
1 c Trop-50 (or lite orange juice)
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla extract

Method:
Combine all ingredients except vanilla extract in a small pot.  Heat to medium-high until boiling, stirring occasionally.  Cook until all the cranberries pop open and the sauce starts to thicken.

Remove from heat and add vanilla extract.  Stir well to combine and let cool to room temperature.  Then refrigerate.  The sauce will get thicker while it cools.

Happy Eating!