This delicious 2-step cranberry sauce made with orange juice and cinnamon is perfect with turkey for the holidays!
This cranberry sauce is a wonderful combination of sweet and tart. The cranberries combine well with orange juice, zest and cinnamon, adding a spiced fruity tartness to dishes, while the black pepper gives a little heat.
It is a perfect accompaniment for roast turkey , baked camembert, or mashed potatoes for Thanksgiving or Christmas, adding a vibrant pop of ruby red colour to the dinner table.
A homemade cranberry sauce is very easy to make and tastes much better than store bought. Making your own means you can easily adjust the ingredients and flavours to your taste (see below for variations).
It was difficult finding fresh cranberries in London in October, but I managed to find 12 oz bags of fresh Canadian cranberries from Wholefoods. Waitrose and M&S assured me they will be in stock from November.
The quantity is perfect for this recipe, making enough for 8 servings or 2 ½ cups.
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Cranberry sauce uses
Cranberry sauce can be used as a spread or mixed with a little water or orange juice for a runnier consistency, to pour over waffles or in desserts such as these cranberry orange muffins or over cheesecake and Kladdkaka.
Here are some great ways to enjoy cranberry sauce:
- over a baked brie or camembert
- as a layer in cakes
- as jam
- with plain cream cheese with warm bread
- on french toast/pancakes
- to flavour yogurts/ice cream
- as a glaze for poultry and meats
Selecting ingredients
For this recipe you can use fresh cranberries or frozen. For dried cranberries, you will need to add ½ more orange juice or water during cooking to rehydrate the berries.
Rinse the cranberries and discard any that are soft or shrivelled. They are quite tart, so you will need to add plenty of sugar.
Use a good quality orange juice and one that is not terribly sweet or you will need to reduce the amount of sugar in the recipe.
How to make it
There are only 2 steps to this recipe:
- Prepare the sugar syrup
- Add the cranberries and cook till they begin to pop.
Allow the sauce to cool before using or storing. The sauce will gel and thicken as it cools.
Garnish with some orange zest before serving.
Make ahead
You can absolutely make this cranberry sauce days in advance in preparation for a large get together. In fact I would recommend you do as allowing it to rest in the fridge for a few days allows the flavours to come together, and it will taste amazing!
FAQs
This is the top thin layer of orange skin. It is rich in fruit oils giving an intense orange flavour.
First rinse and dry the orange, then using a grater or microplane shave off the top thin layer of the orange peel. Grate in one direction only, turning the orange to zest the entire fruit. Do not grate the white pith that lies just beneath the peel as it is bitter and will ruin the flavour of the zest.
Variations
Here are some ideas to tweak the sauce:
- Reduce the amount of sugar to ¾ of a cup if you prefer the sauce to be a little more tart.
- Orange juice can be substituted with water
- Add a diced small apple with the cranberries, and a pinch of allspice and nutmeg for extra spice.
- Leave the sauce slightly chunky or use a potato masher for a smoother consistency.
Storing
Cranberry sauce can be made in advance.
Transfer to a glass jar and keep in the fridge for up to 2 weeks, or freeze for up to 2 months.
Defrost in the fridge overnight before using.
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📋 Recipe
Cranberry Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 cup orange juice 250ml
- 1 cup sugar 200g
- ¼ teaspoon cinnamon ground
- 4 cups cranberries (12 oz packet) rinsed
- a pinch salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper ground
- 1 small orange zest
Instructions
- In a medium saucepan combine orange juice, cinnamon and sugar and bring to a boil, stirring till the sugar has dissolved.
- Add the salt and cranberries, bring to a boil then lower the heat and simmer for 10 minutes or till most of the berries have burst. Remove from the heat. It will look runny at this point but will thicken as it cools. Garnish with orange zest and serve chilled or at room temperature.
Notes
- Make ahead for best results as the flavours improve after resting for a couple of days.
- Rinse the cranberries and discard any that are soft or shrivelled.
- Orange juice can be substituted with water.
- Reduce the amount of sugar to ¾ of a cup if you prefer it to be a little more tart.
- Adding a pinch of salt helps to enhance the flavours.
- Serve chilled or at room temperature.
- Garnish with orange zest.
- To zest the orange – rinse and dry the orange, then using a microplane, shave away the skin without removing the bitter pith underneath. Mix with a little orange juice or water for pouring consistency.
- To Store – Transfer to a glass jar and keep in the fridge for up to 2 weeks, or freeze for up to 2 months. Defrost in the fridge overnight before using.
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Nutrition
Nutritional information is calculated automatically and accuracy cannot be guaranteed. The information above is an estimate per serving.
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