Popping Cranberry Sauce

What you need

• Berries, 1 bag of fresh cranberries
• Sugar, 3/4 cup
• Orange juice, 3/4 cup
• Measuring cups, 1
• Colander, 1
• Pot, 1 medium saucepan
• Spoon, 1 wooden spoon
• Bowl, 1 heatproof bowl
• Crackers, a plateful
• Plate or tray, 1 for crackers, plus 1 small plate for tasting
• Canned cranberry sauce, 1 can, for comparing (optional)

How to do it

Grown-up prep: You will use the stove and hot sauce, so a grown-up needs to be nearby the whole time. Check for citrus allergies before starting.

1. Rinse the cranberries in the colander under cool water.
2. Pick out any soft or brown berries.
3. Measure the sugar and orange juice into the saucepan.
4. Tip in the berries.
5. A grown-up heats the pan over medium heat. A grown-up does this
6. Step back, watch and listen. Count every pop!
   Ask: How many pops do you think we will hear? Why do you think the berries burst?
7. A grown-up keeps it bubbling for about ten minutes, until it thickens. A grown-up does this
8. A grown-up takes the pan off the heat and pours the sauce into the bowl. A grown-up does this
9. Wait about half an hour while the sauce cools and sets.
   Ask: What do you think will happen to the runny sauce as it cools?
10. Taste the sauce on a cracker, then share it at the big meal!
    Ask: Which do you like best, yours or the canned one?

Play it again

• Pop prediction: guess the number of pops first, then count and see who was closest.
• Flavor twist: add a strip of orange peel or a pinch of cinnamon to the pan and taste the difference.
• Sauce sandwich: spread the cooled sauce on bread with cheese or turkey for a snack.