Jellied Cranberry Sauce

From the Cook’s Illustrated kitchen of Adam Reid

Ingredients

12 ounces fresh or frozen cranberries
4 cups sweetened cranberry juice
265 g sugar
¼ tsp vanilla extract
¼ tsp table salt

Instructions

1. Cook the cranberry mixture

Bring cranberry juice, cranberries, sugar, and salt to a boil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat, stirring to dissolve sugar.

Cook for 10 minutes, lowering heat slightly if mixture threatens to boil over.

Mash cranberries, then continue cooking—stirring frequently—until slightly thickened, about 15 minutes. Mixture will be foamy but will subside as it cooks.

2. Strain

Carefully strain mixture through a fine-mesh strainer set over a 4-cup liquid measuring cup.

Press solids with a spoon or ladle until about 1/4 cup skins, seeds, and pulp remain in the strainer.

You should have about 2 3/4 cups strained mixture.

If you have more than 2 3/4 cups, return liquid to the saucepan and reduce until you reach that volume.

Scrape any thick mixture from the bottom of the strainer into the measuring cup. Discard remaining solids.

Stir in the vanilla until smooth.

3. Mold and chill

Transfer mixture to a 3-cup mold or a clean 15-ounce can.

Let cool for at least 1 hour, then cover and refrigerate until firm—4 hours or up to 4 days.