The best Homemade Cranberry Sauce you will ever have, and it’s completely processed sugar free! Sweetened with maple syrup and done in 15 minutes, you’ll never serve the canned stuff again.
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I’m a huge cranberry fan, but I never really like the canned stuff. I KNOW. This is a huge debate, and I’m not looking to get into one. To each his own!
To me, though, nothing can compare to the fresh flavors, the tartness, the aromas of the spices in a fresh, homemade cranberry sauce.
And in my version, I only sweeten with maple syrup, so it’s processed sugar free! You absolutely do not need another reason to feel guilty over what you are eating this holiday season. So, why not skip the white sugar loaded canned cranberry jelly and make this healthy, homemade cranberry sauce instead?
Homemade Cranberry Sauce
A lot of people make the exact same dinner for Christmas as they do for Thanksgiving, so I know there will be a need for this no matter who you are.
This Homemade Cranberry Sauce recipe is very, very, very easy to make, and it only takes about 15 minutes total to put together!
Here’s what you do:
- Put the whole cranberries, orange juice, maple syrup, spices and a pinch of salt in a saucepan over high heat.
- Bring the liquid to a rapid simmer, stir, and reduce the heat to medium/low, keeping a gentle simmer going.
- Simmer for 10-15 minutes, stirring frequently so the sugars don’t burn, until the whole cranberries have mostly all popped and all are very soft.
- Turn the heat off at this point, and go to town with a potato masher until you get the consistency you like.
- Then you just put it in the fridge until it’s nice and cold, unless you like room temperature cranberry sauce. That would make this take even less time.
Would this be your first time making homemade cranberry sauce? I make it because I think homemade stuff is better for your body and pretty much always tastes better than packaged stuff.
Why are you making it? Is it to stay away from processed sugars and artificial ingredients? This homemade cranberry sauce is absolutely perfect for that because the only liquids and sweeteners are orange juice and maple syrup, which both contain natural sugars that your body knows what to do with!
This recipe calls for quite a bit of maple syrup to really sweeten it up and counteract the tartness of the fresh whole cranberries, but if you aren’t too big on sweet and prefer the tart flavor, cut the maple syrup by a ¼ cup or even a ½ cup!
I actually don’t remember ever having the canned version when I was growing up – but I don’t remember specifically having the homemade version either. I may have just skipped it entirely as a child, which sounds like something a kid would do.
As an adult, I always make my own homemade cranberry sauce and have for as long as I can remember being a grown up. It’s just too darn easy not to! And when you are really watching what goes into your body, when you are truly and actively caring about your health, it’s little things like making your own homemade cranberry sauce that count in the long term.
I’ve used orange juice as my liquid for this basic Homemade Cranberry Sauce recipe, but you could use any juice you prefer. I’ve used white grape juice and apple juice with success. I’ve also subbed some of the juice with Brandy! That is YUM.
And in the same way, I’ve used cinnamon and clove to spice my cranberry sauce, but you could use what you like. Chinese five spice would be a really great idea! I’ll try that next time.
So, friends out there, will you give this very simple and easy Homemade Cranberry Sauce a try this holiday season? Please make me happy and say you will. You will be SO glad you did!
If you love cranberry sauce, you won’t want to miss out on my Baked Brie with Cranberry Sauce - it’s a great idea for using up leftover cranberry sauce! And cranberry lovers will want to try this Paleo Cranberry Chicken for Instant Pot. Done in about 30 minutes and HUGE on flavor!
If you’re a baker, try my Cranberry Sauce Stuffed Dark Chocolate Cupcakes! The best holiday dessert. And these Grain Free Goat Cheese Tarts with Cranberries and Cinnamon have some of my absolute favorite flavors in one place.
I even have a round-up of 21 Ways To Use Leftover Cranberry Sauce so you won’t have to throw any of this gold away.
Need more savory cranberry recipes? I got you!
- Slow Cooker Cranberry Brisket
- Salmon Sliders with Cranberry Sauce
- One Pan Cranberry Orange Chicken
- Cranberry Glazed Meatballs
- One Pan Cranberry Balsamic Roasted Chicken
- Paleo Cranberry Chicken for the Instant Pot
Vanessa at The Cheerful Kitchen
Yields 3 cups
The best Homemade Cranberry Sauce you will ever have, and it's completely processed sugar free! Sweetened with maple syrup and done in 15 minutes, you'll never serve the canned stuff again.
10 minCook Time
10 minTotal Time
Save RecipeIngredients
- 4 cups fresh cranberries
- 1 cup orange juice
- 1 cup maple syrup
- pinch of salt
- 1/4 tsp cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp ground clove
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients in a saucepan and stir to combine.
- Turn the heat to medium/high and bring to a simmer. When simmering, stir and turn the heat to low.
- Cook over low heat, keeping a steady simmer, and stirring occasionally for 10-15.
- When the berries have softened and mostly popped (see third photo in the post for what they look like at this point), turn the heat off.
- Using a potato masher, mash the heck out of the mixture until it is void of large chunks and thick (see fourth photo in the post for how it looks when mashed.)
- Transfer the cranberry sauce to a bowl or container and cool on the counter until no longer steaming, then cover and keep in the fridge until chilled. Can be made up to 5 days ahead of time.
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