I’m making a bet here. I’m betting you’ve bought some cranberries in the past few days. (Ahem, I did tell you to do that a few days ago.) Perhaps you will use them for Sue’s cranberry apple galette, or maybe, just maybe you are keeping them at the ready for a to-be-determined cranberry sauce.

Trying to decide on the right cranberry sauce is one of those things that should not take up much brainspace. And yet it does. Here’s your answer. Make two sauces: one spicy and odd enough for foodies, and one straight up sweet with just a whiff of sophistication from Meyer lemon zest. Lucky for you, you already have candied ginger and Meyer lemon from your test run of Thanksgiving cocktails.

If you don’t need two batches of sauce (but c’mon, you know you do), just halve each recipe and make everyone happy.

The first recipe comes from my Rocky Mtn Correspondent and favorite cowgirl Tania. The second is a standard cranberry sauce recipe with the cha-cha of our favorite lemon. I have pleaded before but will do so again: Use real Meyer lemons for this. They’re just plain better. If you must substitute just don’t tell me about it and everyone wins.

Cranberry Chutney

Ingredients

2 tart apples peeled, cored and chopped into 1/4″ dice
2 cups cranberries coarsely chopped (or pulsed a few times in the the food processor)
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup golden raisins
1/2 medium onion diced
3 T crystallized ginger chopped
1 T mustard seeds
2 cloves garlic minced
1 t grated lemon zest
1 t curry powder
1/2 t salt
1/2 t cayenne pepper

Method

Put all ingredients in a pot. Bring to a boil stirring occasionally. Lower heat and cook for about 15 min. Cool and refrigerate.  Can be made a day or two ahead of Thanksgiving.

Note from Tania: I always double and go heavy on all spices because this is so good on leftovers.

Meyer Lemon Cranberry Sauce

Ingredients

Zest of 1 to 2 Meyer Lemons
1 bag of fresh or frozen whole cranberries
1 cup of water
1 cup of sugar
Healthy squeeze or two of Meyer lemon juice

Method

For each 12-oz bag of cranberries (or 12 oz bulk freshies if you have them), heat 1 cup of water and 1 cup of sugar until the sugar has dissolved. Once the sugar is dissolved, bring the mixture to a boil for 5 minutes. Add the cranberries, lemon juice and  lemon zest. Continue boiling for 10 or so minutes until the cranberries start making a popping sound and they are flirting with mushiness. Turn off the heat, and let the sauce cool. Transfer it to a serving container or small mason jars. Let it cool a bit, then stick it in the fridge until you’re ready to use it. It will thicken up as it cools.

Happy Thanksgiving to all!