Look no further for the Best Ever Cranberry Sauce! This easy and delightful recipe takes only 15 minutes to make and a handful of ingredients! Spiced with cinnamon and sweetened with orange juice, it is the best combination of sweet and tart! The perfect complement to your holiday meal! Getting ready for Thanksgiving? Make sure to checkout the Best Turkey Gravy Recipe and this ridiculously easy Slow Cooker Citrus and Herb Turkey Breast for the best Thanksgiving yet!
Cranberry Sauce
Thanksgiving is almost here and I am running around like a crazy person making sure everything is ready to go! The turkey, the gravy, the potatoes, it’s all part of the “perfect” Thanksgiving meal.
One recipe that I feel often gets overlooked is the cranberry sauce. So many people go for the canned stuff, and while it’s great in a pinch, it doesn’t even come close to comparing to homemade.
This particular cranberry sauce recipe that I’m sharing with you today is fool-proof. It takes about 15 minutes, start to finish, and is the perfect combination of sweet and tart. It’s flavored with orange juice, orange peel and a cinnamon stick. So easy you guys!
I made this exact cranberry sauce for the these Cranberry Pecan Brie Bites that I shared with you last week and then realized… whoah! I’ve never even posted this recipe on it’s own and trust me, this Best Ever Cranberry Sauce deserves it’s own post!
Cranberry Sauce for the Holidays
Cranberry sauce is an essential part of every holiday meal for one simple reason – it cuts through the heaviness of all the other dishes. It’s light, it’s bright, and it’s actually pretty darn healthy. I add orange and cinnamon to my cranberry sauce which really gives it more depth of flavor and sweetens it just slightly. It’s still lovely and tart but not quite so tart that you’ll be puckering your lips.
What Do I Need To Make Cranberry Sauce?
This easy cranberry sauce recipe uses just a handful of real, whole ingredients:
- cranberries
- oranges
- cinnamon
- sugar
- and just a pinch of salt
Cranberry sauce is the perfect way to cut through the heaviness of a Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner and it adds a gorgeous pop of color and flavor to every bite. I hope you give this super easy recipe a try this holiday season!
Can Cranberry Sauce Be Make In Advance?
You betcha! In fact, this is my number one make-ahead recipe. It is served chilled so you need to make it at least one day in advance anyways. I find that the flavor is even better after two or three days so if you time beforehand, I would recommend just getting this recipe out of the way at the beginning of the week. One more note: you might want to double the recipe. I LOVE cranberry sauce in leftover turkey sandwiches the next day…and the next day…and the next day 🙂
Making Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner? Don’t forget these favorites:
- The Best Turkey Gravy Recipe
- Twice Baked Potato Casserole
- Best Ever Broccoli Salad
- Slow Cooker Citrus and Herb Turkey Breast
How To Make Cranberry Sauce
Best Ever Cranberry Sauce
Ingredients
- ¾ cup sugar
- ½ cup orange juice
- ½ cup water
- 12 oz fresh cranberries rinsed and picked through
- pinch of salt
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 1 piece of orange peel just use a potato peel or paring knife
Instructions
- Combine sugar, orange juice, and water in a large saucepan over medium heat. Stir to combine.
- Add cranberries, salt, cinnamon stick and orange peel.
- Bring to a simmer over medium heat, stirring frequently.
- Continue cooking, for about 10 minutes, or until all or most of the cranberries have popped. I like to leave a handful of berries whole.
- Let cool for at least 30 minutes. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.
- Can be made up to 3 days in advance.
Video
Nutrition
Originally published November 22, 2016.
More cranberry recipes:
Cranberry Pecan Mini Goat Cheese Balls
White Chocolate Cranberry Fudge
Cranberry Orange Shortbread Cookies
White Chocolate Cranberry Cheesecake
For all appetizer recipes, go HERE.
For all dessert recipes, go HERE.
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Blythe says
Can the cinnamon stick be substituted for some ground cinnamon if you haven’t a stick on hand? If so, how much of it ground would you say to use? Thanks! I made it last year and it was amazing, loved it! This year I forgot to get cinnamon sticks though
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
Yes, in a pinch! Let’s say 1/2 tsp.
Michelle says
After seeing how easy this was and so darn tasty, I am confused as to why I haven’t been doing it for years!!! Thanks for sharing
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
I’m so glad you gave it a try!
Kieran Jukes says
Tastes amazing. I’m using it to make bacon, Brie and cranberry puff pastry tarts. I’m going to add 60ml of port to the next batch.
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
Delicious!
Mariam says
Can this be frozen?
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
Absolutely! Just let it defrost in the fridge.
April says
this came out great, thanks so much for the recipe!
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
You’re so welcome!
Laura Atkinson says
I’m excited to make this for Christmas. I wonder if I can make ahead and freeze?
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
You sure can!
Jessica S says
Loved it!
Karl says
I presume that you can use frozen cranberries
Graziella Costanzo says
I’ve made this for years, only I add a tablespoon (more or less) of Grand Marnier or Cointreau. Delish and easy recipe, thx for reminding me! Only problem, I live in Italy now and don’t have access to fresh cranberries, oh well!
Gabi says
This was such a hit on thanksgiving, I had to make more to have with the leftovers!
April says
I have never made homemade Cranberry Sauce, now I’m Addicted!! I had to make 4 batches because it was so good. Used the leftovers to make some thumbprint cookies and cranberry bars. This will be my new favorite Thanksgiving recipe. Thanks!
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
MMmmm! Love the idea of using it with thumbprint cookies!
Stefanie says
I made this last year for Christmas dinner I hosted for the family. Everyone went crazy over this sauce!! They are asking me if I’m making it again this year, thank you for sharing the recipe!
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
Thank you so much Stefanie!
Cheri Reed says
Your Best Cranberry Sauce Ever was awesome and sooooooo yummy! The cinnamon stick and orange peel added a hint of both flavors. My family( 20 of them) loved it for Thanksgiving Dinner. It will definitely be a keeper!
Thank you so much for this delightful recipe that I plan to make over, and over, and over, etc!
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
So happy to hear that Cheri!
Susan says
I will be making this again next year! Only a couple of us in my family love cranberry sauce, which is ok with me because that’s just more for me! Ha! I LOVE the tartness and how easy this is to make! Thank you!! It didn’t last long!
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
Thank you so much Susan!
Mary says
My family said this was the best cranberry sauce they have ever had. Thank you for this delicious recipe. It made our Thanksgiving complete.
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
I really appreciate you stopping by Mary – thank you!