Bourbon Persimmon Cranberry Sauce

Cranberry Sauce is a time tested and taste approved staple of fall and winter holiday meals. It's tangy, tart, and moist presence complements our thanksgiving turkey and enhances leftover sandwich creations for weeks after. This Instructable will explore a revamped cranberry sauce that takes advantage of not only other fall fruits but also the smokey taste of bourbon.

Follow along to discover a new holiday cranberry sauce to tickle your tastebuds and flatter your turkey this holiday season. Enjoy.

Gather the following for your Cranberry Sauce:

• 24 oz (1 1/2 cups) Fresh Cranberries
• 4 Fuyu Persimmons
• 1/2 Cup of White Sugar
• 1/4 Cup of Bourbon*
• 1/2 Cup of Water*

*NOTE these items are not pictured above.

Place your cranberries, sugar and 1/2 cup of water in a deep sauce pan. Turn your stove on to medium heat. Heat until your sauce begins to simmer. Continue to simmer for about 5-7 minutes. The cranberries will break down into a sauce like consistency and your water content should reduce so that your mixture is thick and not watery. Stir consistently so as not to burn your sauce.

Add 1/4 c of bourbon to your mixture. If you want the taste of bourbon without the alcoholic content, continue to simmer for another 3-5 minutes again taking care to stir consistently. You can also keep the alcoholic content and simply remove the pan from the stove. I prefer to cook it off but retain the flavor.

While your sauce is simmering, cut the ends off of your persimmons and peel away the skin with a vegetable peeler or carefully with a knife. Cut your persimmons into eighths and continue to dice your persimmons. You can dice them as small as you'd like. Since the cranberries have already broken down into the sauce, your persimmons will be the largest item in your sauce. Because of this, I like to chop them to 1cm cubes usually, but again, you can leave them larger if you like.

Fold your chopped persimmons into your sauce. Stir gently but thoroughly to evenly incorporate the persimmons with the cranberries.

Place in a tupperware to store or serve immediately. If you store it, keep your sauce in your refrigerator and keep for several weeks.

Add it to your Thanksgiving meal, or to your next sandwich! Enjoy.