This recipe for homemade cranberry sauce will be a staple on your Thanksgiving table, as it has been on mine for over ten years! It is the perfect tangy and sweet accompaniment to the big bird at your feast, using fresh cranberries, apples, warm spices and a little orange zest for some extra pizazz!
When it comes to preparing the traditional Thanksgiving meal, you got to go homemade on the Cranberry Sauce! There’s really just no reason not to! It’s easy, fresh, tangy, tart, sweet- ugh.. I just love it so much! And my love has clearly passed down to my children, as now they load it on their plates as if it was the star of the show.
In my recipe for Cranberry Sauce with Apples and Orange Zest I add a couple little twists, in typical Salt Sugar Spice fashion, to bump up the flavors and really hit the ball out of the park!
Even with the few additional ingredients, this is still the easiest side dish you will prepare all week and I highly recommend getting the kids involved on the fun! As the cranberries start to heat up, you will hear the unmistakable sound of … pop, pop, pop, which is apparently VERY fun to hear/watch if you are a person under 10 years old!
WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE:
3 cups fresh cranberries . Make sure you rinse them and pick through to find any ones that are browned or soggy. I use two 12 oz bags and I usually have about 12 to feed. With this amount we have some leftovers as well (crucial)
1¼ cups sugar– regular granulated sugar would be fine. But I bet brown sugar would be pretty awesome too!
2 cups water– ’nuff said
1 apple – I like to use a Granny Smith. I just love green apples when cooking and baking. If you want to go with some other variety, I’d say Gala, Honeycrisp, Empire, Matsu, or Jonagold would be good choices.
½ orange rind– use a vegetable or Y-peeler to shave off a couple strips of the orange peel before you juice the orange.
½ juice from orange– Using Orange as a beautiful, bright citrus note that is unexpected but appreciated!
½ tsp ground cinnamon– The cranberry sauce just wouldn’t be complete without it the warm fragrance of cinnamon!
¼ tsp ground cloves– Just a little pinch of clove goes a long way!
HOW TO MAKE:
1.Wash orange and remove rind. Squeeze the juice from the orange and reserve. In a small saucepan over high heat, combine the rind and the water and bring to a boil. The goal is to infused the orange and the water!! Cook for 10 minutes, then drain to remove orange peel and set aside. This will be the water you use to combine with the rest of the ingredients.
2. Peel, core and quarter the apple. Cut into 1/2-inch dice and place in a saucepan. Sort the cranberries, discarding any soft or brown ones.
3. In medium size sauce pot, combine cranberries, apple, orange infused water, orange juice, sugar, cinnamon and cloves. Bring to a boil over high heat, reduce heat to low and cover the pan partially. Simmer gently, stirring occasionally, until the sauce thickens, the apple is tender and the cranberries have burst, 10 to 15 minutes.
Transfer the cranberry sauce to a heatproof bowl and let cool for 1 hour before serving. Or cover and refrigerate; bring to room temperature before serving.
CAN I MAKE IN ADVANCE?
YES!! 100%!
Planning and preparing ahead of time is the name of the game when it comes to making Thanksgiving go as smoothly and stress free as possible.
I generally make this 2 days in advance, so on the Tuesday of Thanksgiving week, and store in the fridge in an airtight container, About an hour or two before “go time” I take out and place in my pretty serving dish to let it come to room temperature. Some people like their cranberry sauce warm, in that case simply reheat in saucepan just before serving !
Looking for MORE Thanksgiving Recipes?
BROWNED BUTTER MASHED POTATOES
APPLE CORNBREAD STUFFING WITH FENNEL AND PANCETTA
EASY & OLD FASHIONED EASY APPLE CRISP RECIPE
Cranberry Sauce with Apples and Orange Zest
Ingredients
- 2 12 oz bags fresh cranberries rinsed and picked through rinsed and picked through
- 1½ cups sugar add ½ cup more if you like very sweet
- 1 apple i prefer granny smith, about 1½ cup
- 2 cups water orange infused
- ½ orange rind
- 1 orange fresh squeeze juice
- ¼ tsp ground cinnamon
- ⅛ tsp ground cloves
Instructions
- Wash orange and remove rind. Squeeze the juice from the orange and reserve. In a small saucepan over high heat, combine the rind and the water and bring to a boil. Cook for 10 minutes, then remove orange peel.
- Peel, core and quarter the apple, cut into 1/2-inch dice. Sort the cranberries, discarding any soft or brown ones.
- Add cranberries, apple, orange infused water, orange juice, sugar, cinnamon, and cloves.
- Bring to a boil over high heat, lower heat and cover the pan partially. Simmer gently, stirring occasionally, until the sauce thickens, the apple is tender and the cranberries have burst, 10 to 15 minutes.
- Transfer the cranberry sauce to a heatproof bowl and let cool for 1 hour before serving. Or cover and refrigerate; bring to room temperature before serving.
Nutrition
