Bowls of cranberry sauce are as ubiquitous as the turkey itself on most Thanksgiving menus. Wisconsin is the major producer in the U.S. and most cranberry bogs in the Northeast are in Massachusetts, where there are still many historic, family-run bog farms. Ocean Spray, the largest cranberry supplier in the world, is also located in Massachusetts.
One major factor is the state’s geological history. Tens of thousands of years ago, retreating glaciers carved out shallow depressions and kettle ponds all across southeastern part of the state, through Cape Cod, Plymouth County, and the islands of Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket. These filled with sand, peat and gravel which provided the perfect environment for cranberry vines. Wampanoag people harvested the fruit for food and medicine and introduced it to European settlers, who named them “craneberries,” because the flower heads were thought to resemble the head of a Sandhill crane.
I visited a cranberry bog on Nantucket many years ago that had been flooded and I have a vivid memory of walking a ridge through the middle of it, surrounded by a sea of bright red berries. Harrows had been used to separate them from the vines and they were being corralled by workers in waders, who used booms to move them into pumping machines that transferred them onto trucks.
My husband preferred canned cranberry jelly slices on Thanksgiving but I always served a bowl of whole-berry sauce or compote alongside it. I start with this classic recipe and then experiment if time allows:
- 1 12-ounce bag of fresh berries
- I cup white sugar
- 1 cup water
Put the water and sugar in a medium saucepan on high heat and bring to a boil. Stir to dissolve the sugar. Add the cranberries to the pot and return to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer for 10 minutes or until most of the cranberries have burst. From there you can leave the cranberry sauce as-is or dress it up with other ingredients. Try orange zest, a pinch of cinnamon, raisins, and/or chopped nuts. Chill and enjoy!