A Keto Holiday in Hawaii – Cranberry Sauce

Welcome to Hawaiian Keto Girl, where I feature local keto eateries and transform local Hawaii recipes into keto friendly options.  My recipes are always sugar free, low carb, and simple enough for the everyday cook.  

A HAWAIIAN HOLIDAY

Today’s recipe is something for the holidays.  While growing up, I recall our ohana doing “themed” dinners for holidays. For instance, we would cycle through Chinese food, Hawaiian food, Filipino food, Japanese food, etc., commemorating the different ethnic backgrounds part of our heritage. I always thought this was a fun tradition. My grandmother would cook all the food and lay out the best spreads. Unfortunately, this tradition isn’t practiced anymore as our family lives on different islands and my grandmother is older now. However, some of her recipes have been passed down and these days our holiday dinners are very eclectic, featuring dishes from all kinds of backgrounds.

HOLIDAY MEMORIES

With that said, no matter what type of food was planned for our ohana holidays, cranberry sauce always made it to the table. Which is why this recipe is nostalgic for me! I remember being my Papa’s cranberry sauce partner during the holidays.  He would always make sure to buy a can of cranberry sauce every holiday, slice it up, and offer it to me, knowing I would dig in.  I recall my mom joining us as well and we would be the only three people who would eat this with our Thanksgiving meal.  Well, fast forward to adulthood and learning to host and cook my own Thanksgiving meals, I naturally desired to learned how to make my own cranberry sauce.  Sadly, I never had the chance to let my Papa try my cranberry sauce.  But I think of him every time I buy the ingredients, cook it, and eat it.  Isn’t it fascinating how many memories food can hold?  I always feel so close to my Papa when sharing this story and reminiscing on those fond memories.

KETO FRIENDLY SWEETENERS

The main ingredient (beside the cranberries) is the sweetener! There are a variety of keto friendly sweeteners, but I prefer using allulose. When I am in a pinch, I will also use erythitol, but I always try to do a blend of erythritol and allulose. Erythritol has a “cooling effect” aftertaste that cannot be missed if you are new to keto. My taste buds have adjusted and I cannot detect that “cooling effect” as much anymore, but my husband can detect the slightest amount. When I need to use erythritol, I always stick with Swerve or Anthony’s Erythritol. My favorite brand of allulose is BetterFoods Allulose. It is the most cost effective which is important as I use allulose for all my recipes and allulose is not readily available in stores on Oahu. I have compiled all the brands that I have tried and made a list of my recommendations here: 

Whole Earth Allulose

Wholesome Yum Besti Keto Powdered Allulose

It’s Just – Allulose

BetterFoods Allulose (MY FAVE)

Have Yourself a Hawaiian Keto Holiday!

I hope that you’ve enjoy this recipe.  Please subscribe to both my blog and YouTube channel to stay updated with my latest keto adventures and Hawaii inspired keto recipes.  As always, take care and aloha!