Cranberry Sauce with Frozen Cranberries

No holiday table feels complete without some cranberry sauce; the tart-sweetness helps balance out all the other rich dishes. This cranberry sauce with frozen cranberries is our go-to recipe packed with tons of flavor from simple ingredients like cinnamon and fresh orange. 

Skip the jello-like canned cranberry sauce this year and make your own cranberry sauce. It’s the perfect side dish and takes just 15 minutes to make this easy recipe. Plus, it is much more flavorful than the canned stuff. This cranberry sauce with frozen cranberries makes an appearance at our Thanksgiving dinner year after year – it’s just the BEST cranberry sauce recipe!

If you are having trouble finding fresh cranberries at the grocery store, don’t forget to check out the freezer. Frozen cranberries are sometimes easier to find and work really well in cranberry sauce.

As a plant-based dietitian, I also love that cranberries are packed with nutrients like vitamin C, a powerful antioxidant. 

Ingredients You’ll Need

• Cranberries: use fresh or frozen whole cranberries for this homemade cranberry sauce recipe. No need to thaw the frozen cranberries, you can just add them to the saucepan straight from the freezer. You’ll need an entire 12-ounce bag of cranberries for this easy homemade cranberry sauce recipe. 
• Orange: fresh squeezed orange juice and some orange zest add sweetness and delicious citrus flavor to this Thanksgiving cranberry sauce. It also helps balance out the bitterness of the cranberries. Using fresh orange juice is also one of our favorite ways to reduce the amount of sugar needed for this recipe.
• Maple Syrup: rather than granulated white sugar or brown, you’ll use pure maple syrup to sweeten this sauce. 
• Orange Liqueur: add even more orange flavor with a little bit of orange liqueur like Grand Marnier in the sauce. You can skip altogether or substitute with another liquor like bourbon, a splash of port, or even red wine. 
• Cinnamon: we love adding a bit of cinnamon to our simple cranberry sauce recipe as it adds some warming flavor to this tart dish. We used ground cinnamon, but you can throw a cinnamon stick into the pot while cooking and then strain it out before serving.

How to Make Cranberry Sauce with Frozen Cranberries

• Simmer in a saucepan: making homemade cranberry sauce couldn’t be any easier. Just combine cranberries with the rest of the ingredients in a medium saucepan over medium heat and bring to a gentle simmer. As it simmers, the cranberries will start to pop and break down. (You can also help break them open with the back of a spoon or a potato masher.) Simmer until thickened to your liking. 
• Allow to cool: allow the cranberry sauce to cool at least 10-15 minutes before serving. You can also store it in the fridge until ready to use and serve it chilled.

FAQs

What to Eat with Cranberry Sauce

Other than serving this easy cranberry sauce recipe alongside all of your other vegan Thanksgiving dishes like this vegan green bean casserole, there are so many other fun ways to enjoy cranberry sauce. We love adding it to vegan overnight oats or this cinnamon oatmeal recipe. It is also a delicious topping for a bowl of yogurt, waffles, or pancakes. 

For a savory option, mix cranberry sauce with BBQ sauce and use as a sauce or marinade for BBQ tempeh or seitan. Leftover cranberry sauce can also be blitzed into a salad dressing with balsamic vinegar – that would be delicious on this apple, kale, walnut salad.

Storage

• How long does cranberry sauce last in the fridge? Homemade cranberry sauce can be stored in an airtight container or covered in plastic wrap in the refrigerator for up to 10-14 days.
• How to freeze cranberry sauce: Homemade cranberry sauce can be frozen for up to 3 months. (Technically, you can keep it for up to a year, but it will lose some of its freshness.) Just make sure to store in a freezer friendly container that is airtight.