Cranberry Sauce

There are few foods more all-American than cranberry sauce. Cranberries are native to the United States, and are one of only three Native American fruits that are commercially cultivated on a large scale. (The other two are blueberries and Concord grapes.) Their distinctive tart flavor has made them a huge national favorite.

And it's that tartness that works in our favor. Ever tasted a fresh, unsweetened cranberry? Little suckers are sour! Which means two things: One, that nearly all commercial cranberry products are loaded with sugar, including the iconic cranberry sauce on our Thanksgiving tables. And two, that if we make our own cranberry sauce, we can count on it being quite low carb.

After all, a half-cup of fresh, raw cranberries has just 6 grams of carbohydrate, 2 of which are fiber, for a usable carb count of 4 grams. They're not an impressive source of vitamins -- 11% of your daily C is the most notable -- but they're a terrific source of antioxidants called proanthocyanidins. This is the compound in cranberries that helps prevent urinary tract infections, by keeping germs from adhering to bladder walls. Cranberries also appear to have further anti-bacterial and anti-viral properties.

The trick, of course, lies in not adding sugar! Fortunately, making your own whole-berry cranberry sauce couldn't be a whole lot easier. Here's how:

In a big, non-reactive saucepan, combine:

1 cup water
1 cup Splenda granular (or, if you prefer, erythritol)
12 ounce bag fresh cranberries

Bring to a simmer, and cook till the cranberries pop. That's it! Put it in a jar or snap-top container and refrigerate for at least a day before serving.

If you like, you can add 1/2 teaspoon unflavored gelatin powder to this mixture, to thicken it up a bit, but it's great just like this.

Makes 2 cups, or 16 servings of two tablespoons each, with: 16 Calories; trace Fat ; trace Protein; 4g Carbohydrate. The same sized serving of canned cranberry sauce has 52 calories, with 13 grams of of carbohydrate -- more than three times as much!

One more thought: Cranberries are one of the few fruits that are still strictly seasonal, only available for a few months in the autumn. But they freeze beautifully! If you love cranberry sauce, pick up a few extra bags and toss them in the freezer, so you can have homemade cranberry sauce all year long.