Autumn in Minnesota this year has been incredible. The colors, the smells & the weather have all collaborated so perfectly – it’s truly one of the best I can recall. Another part of what makes autumn so great is the bounty of local harvesters. We recently joined a co-op and have enjoyed so much local produce, and we love knowing we are supporting as many local (or regional) growers as possible.

Last week I picked up some organic cranberries, and decided to pair them with some of the best apples Minnesota has produced in its time: Honeycrisp. The combination is perfect. A bit sweet, a bit tart and bursting with flavors of fall.

This is good food, simply made in under 30 minutes. If you love these seasonal items as much as we do, you’ll love this cranberry apple sauce. Prep time is about 10 minutes, and cook time 15-20. The recipe yields 2 pint sized jars.

Ingredients:

• 5 large Honeycrisp apples, peeled and roughly diced (approximately 5 cups)
• 1.5 cups fresh, organic cranberries
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 1/2 cup grade A, light Amber organic maple syrup
• 1/4 cup water
• The juice of 1 medium sized lemon

• Combine all ingredients in a medium sized pot on stovetop and bring to a simmer over medium low heat. Simmer 20 minutes until the fruit is soft and thickens.
• Mash to desired consistency with a potato masher or food processor.
• Store in 2 mason sized pint jars & refrigerate once cooled.