Shall we talk “cranberry sauce?” There’s not a lot of middle ground on the subject, for sure. Folks either love it and absolutely want it as part of their holiday meal, or they could care less and wouldn’t indulge in it if it was on the table.

I bring the topic up in honor of those of you who do care and do want it as part of your holiday feast. And I’m quoting Bailey Fink, a devout home cook and editor for www.allrecipes.com. Just to be clear, we’re talking canned cranberry sauce, not homemade. Why not homemade? Because time and stove-top space are essential on Thanksgiving, so anything that can free us up is a plus. Thus, we look to the canned version.

Canned cranberry sauce is sold in two varieties: whole-berry cranberry sauce and jellied cranberry sauce. A lot of people who are looking to pass their cranberries off as homemade will likely buy the whole-berry cranberry sauce, dump it into a fancy-looking bowl, and call it a day, while some home cooks might spruce it up a bit with rosemary or citrus.

On the other hand, Bailey says, folks who buy the jellied cranberry sauce typically serve it the traditional way: sliced. If the sliced- jelly-approach is your preference, then give Bailey your ear: “You can jazz up your jellied cranberry sauce in the same way you can whole-berry cranberry sauce.” Here’s how.

By “jazzing up,” she means focusing on a flavor boost. So instead of just slicing it into jellied disks and calling it a day, she suggests considering a few additional ingredients. You’re after “nuanced flavors” that give it “dimension,” and that’s what these ingredients will do.

First of all, your canned cran upgrade starts with topping the slices with similar ingredients you’d use in homemade cranberry sauce, like oranges or pomegranate seeds. The fruity flavors will add brightness.

But then there’s an unexpected ingredient that adds depth: olive oil. It was chefs at Hormel Foods (the providers of Jennie-O® turkeys) that first came up with this idea. They found that drizzling cranberry sauce slices with olive oil and adding a sprinkle of salt and Italian parsley adds an earthy flavor to the otherwise sweet sauce. Similar to adding rosemary to the sauce, olive oil and Italian parsley balance out the tartness and add a complexity that you wouldn’t expect.

Bailey warns not to overdo it on the savory, though. Just a little drizzle of olive oil, just a sprinkle of salt, and a just few Italian parsley leaves can provide a perfect balance. Then, when you add it to your plate or turkey sandwich, make sure you get a slice that has a little bit of everything with the orange slices and pomegranate seeds, too.

So there you go. Save yourself some time and keep some of the stovetop free by going the canned cranberry sauce route. Not only will it look beautiful, but it will also taste different from anything you’ve served at Thanksgiving before!