Dear Barbara: I have been thinking of different things I could make as a side dish for Thanksgiving. I found a great recipe for a cranberry type sauce. I have tried to make cranberry sauce in the past, but no matter how simple the recipe, mine just has this bitter taste. Adding more sugar does not fix it. Did I miss something? — Evelyn from Acampo

Dear Evelyn: I had the same problem when I first started making my own cranberry sauce.  I found out that you should cook them just until they pop. Further cooking will make them bitter; once that happens, you will need to start again. I don’t think people would buy the canned cranberry sauce as often if they knew how easy it is to make. You can add wonderful things to it like orange zest. It can also be made days ahead, which is a big time saver.