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A super simple fresh cranberry sauce is minutes away from your holiday table. With hints of cinnamon and orange, this sauce is perfect for Thanksgiving and Christmas.
Cranberries, oh how I love thee. So tart and yet so sweet! If done right, cranberry sauce is a must that is enjoyed during the holidays. I’m gonna give you the skinny on how I make my cranberry sauce super irresistible!
So the key element to making some knockout, mouth-watering cranberry sauce is finding the balance between the tart and the sweetness. You don’t want it too tart or nobody is going to eat it at all. But you also don’t want it to be too sweet, that’s what the pies are for during the holidays, right?! I accomplish this by using both the juice from oranges and white sugar. Oranges are sweet enough as it is so the more I use, the less processed sugar has to be in the sauce. You still need a little white sugar to sweeten things but orange juice really helps cut down the amount.
I love the paring of oranges with cranberries, the flavors are so refreshing and complement each other very well. I also love the color of orange zest with the cranberries, very festive! When I zest for my cranberry sauce, I like there to be visually obvious flecks in the sauce. I use this tool to get my thicker zest flakes, it doesn’t take any of the white and bitter pith off though so don’t worry. However, if you really don’t care about the thicker zest, a microplane works just as well.
Make sure that the sugar completely dissolves in the sauce, nobody likes gritty cranberry sauce. Remove the cinnamon stick before serving and discard.
I really love this cranberry sauce and think you will to! Have this in your repertoire ready for holiday meals this season!
Happy Holidays!
For other awesome holiday dishes, check out these recipes:
How to Roast a Perfectly Moist Turkey Breast
Green Bean Casserole From Scratch {Deconstructed}
Sweet Potato and Apple Bake with Fresh Cranberries
Chocolate Cream Pie with Graham Cracker Crust
A super simple fresh cranberry sauce is minutes away from your holiday table. With hints of cinnamon and orange, this sauce is perfect for Thanksgiving and Christmas.
- 1 pound fresh cranberries
- 2 each oranges juiced and
- 1/2 cup Sugar
- 1 each cinnamon stick
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Mix ingredients together in a medium sized sauce-pot and bring to a boil over medium-high heat, about 5 minutes.
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Reduce heat and let simmer until sauce thickens and sugar is dissolved, about 20 minutes. Discard cinnamon stick and serve warm (or cold). Garnish with orange zest.
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