Making Cranberries

At my first thanksgiving with my Mother-in-Law, she served the most wonderful cranberries.  They were made from scratch, and while still tart, there was a depth of flavor unknown to me prior.

Ultimately she gave in to my requests.  She swore me to secrecy and then gave me the recipe.

I have been making these cranberries ever since.

My favorite instruction is "Simmer for quite a long time."

No specific time.  No specific appearance.

Just "quite a long time."

This makes the engineer in me uncomfortable.... not that I'm good at following directions.  But I do like a general idea of where I'm going and how long it might take.

The artist in me thinks this is the best instruction I read each year.... it's up to me to determine what done looks like.

The manager in me takes this instruction to heart.... this is my annual reminder to ensure that the people I work with have the autonomy to do the work they've been hired to do.