Cranberries do grow on the East End of Long Island.

A few years ago my husband and I picked a few out on the South Fork, along the LIRR train tracks headed out towards Montauk.

Cranberries grow in boggy areas, so we had to wear high waterproof boots. But more important, we had to keep an eye and ear out for the trains. The tracks sit high up and the cranberries grow down in the ditches alongside the tracks.

I remember once the hair on the back of my neck literally stood up when one of those trains blew past me, just a few feet away from where I was picking and I never heard it coming.

The next time we visited that spot to pick cranberries, a police officer pulled over when he saw our car. Seemed he was on to people parking there for cranberry picking and was discouraging it, due to the danger factor. So that ended our cranberry picking adventures. I am always looking for a new cranberry spot, but it's always good advice to stay away from picking anything near any train tracks. There's the danger factor, but also the possibility that area has been sprayed with herbicides.



This cranberry sauce recipe is so easy that I made it almost without realizing that I was making it.

On Thanksgiving morning, my mom and sister had just arrived from Connecticut to spend the holiday with us and they had arrived earlier this year.

So amidst the cacophony of preparing the turkey, unpacking the car, setting the table, watching the Macy's Parade on TV, my mom talked me through the process.

Luckily I happened to have a one pound package of fresh cranberries on hand and a few leftover tangerines and that's all you need.

First I rinsed the cranberries off in a colander and let them drip dry in the sink, as I sliced the tangerines up into quarters, skins and all.

Then I tossed the pound of cranberries into the blender and set it on chop.

This will be thick and take a few minutes and you will have to push the unchopped fruit that's settled on the sides of the blender down towards the blades. Use a wooden spoon and be careful not to let the spoon make contact with the blades.

As soon as the cranberries were somewhat chopped, then I added the sliced up tangerines to the blender and chopped the entire mixture.

Once chopped, puree the mixture in the blender to make it smoother. As soon as that's done, you're finished.

The cranberry sauce flavor is tart, but not sour. You can adjust the tartness by adding a little honey while it's still in the blender, if you prefer a sweeter version. You can also add a touch of cinammon or nutmeg for a holiday touch.

This sauce goes well with turkey, as well as pork and even roast chicken. You may find yourself making it all year round. Enjoy and Happy Holidays.

Homemade Cranberry Sauce


1 pound bag of fresh cranberries  

(3 to 6) tangerines (use very sweet ones like Halos)

Rinse all produce, slice & quarter tangerines with skins

Throw in blender on chop, then puree til smooth

Serve cold