Perfect cranberry sauce

Usually, my husband has about the same response to everything I cook. "That was good, honey." But he says this regardless of whether I heat up instant mashed potatoes or serve bananas foster flambe at tableside. So my ears pricked up when he asked me to make this cranberry-apple relish again this year for Thanksgiving. He even reminded me that I forgot to make it last year, so you know he's been paying attention! The recipe is from the Cooking Light 2002 Annual Recipes Cookbook. The book contains an entire year's worth of Cooking Light recipes, and it can be purchased online at Amazon.com.

Here's the recipe. It's almost as easy as opening a can of the jellied cranberry sauce!

1 1/2 c. chopped peeled Granny Smith apple
1 c. packed brown sugar
1/2 c. white grape juice
1 tsp. ground ginger
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 (12-ounce) package fresh cranberries

Combine all ingredients in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer until thick (about 15 minutes), stirring occasionally. Cool completely. Yield: 16 servings (serving size: 3 tablespoons)

** I've found that if I make this a few days ahead of time, it only gets better as it sits. Happy Thanksgiving!