Dried Cherry-Cranberry Sauce

I’m a big fan of cranberry sauce. Freshly made cranberry sauce, none of that canned business. Even though my friend Lauren tried to persuade me of the merits of canned cranberry sauce, I just don’t get it. Fresh is where it’s at. I don’t really have a go to recipe for cranberry sauce, I like to try something different every year. This one piqued my interest when I first saw it in Cooking Light and it turned out to be delicious, tart and not too sweet, which is perfect in my book.

Dried Cherry-Cranberry Sauce (from Cooking Light, Nov. 2011, p149 or here)

• 1 tablespoon canola oil
• 1/2 cup chopped onion
• 1 1/4 cups sugar
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/4 cup port wine
• 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1 (12-ounce) package fresh cranberries
• 2 teaspoons grated orange rind
• 1 cup dried cherries
• 1 cup cherry juice

1. Heat oil in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onion, and sauté for 4 minutes. Add sugar and the next 4 ingredients (through cranberries); bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer for 8 minutes or until cranberries pop. Remove from heat, and stir in orange rind.
2. Combine dried cherries and cherry juice in a small saucepan over medium-high heat; bring to a boil. Remove from heat; let stand 10 minutes. Drain. Add drained cherries to cranberry sauce. Serve chilled or at room temperature.