Easy Orange Cranberry Sauce

Cranberry sauce is one of those foods I thought I didn’t like for years. I had only tasted the canned cranberry sauce and didn’t realize how different (and tasty!) homemade cranberry sauce really is. Still, I avoided making it for years because I thought it must be difficult. Boy, was I wrong! It turns out that homemade cranberry sauce is super easy to make! And this easy orange cranberry sauce recipe will fast become a family favorite.

Easy Orange Cranberry Sauce

People tend to associate cranberry sauce solely with Thanksgiving, but it actually goes really well with a variety of dishes no matter what time of year. I love to mix it with my homemade crockpot yogurt to give it a fruity kick. I also pile it atop brie cheese for a delicious appetizer or snack.

Since we all know how well cranberry sauce goes with turkey, why don’t people regularly serve it with roasted chicken? I do! Or put it on toast like jelly? (This orange cranberry sauce is especially good for that.)

Health Benefits of Cranberries

Cranberries have lots of health benefits for those who choose to enjoy them regularly.

• Cranberries are high in antioxidants.
• It is believed that polyphenols contained in cranberries may reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD).
• Some research suggests that cranberries may help treat and/or prevent urinary tract infections.
• Some studies have shown that cranberries can have beneficial effects in cancer patients.
• Cranberries can also help your dental health both by keeping plaque creating bacteria from sticking to teeth and by improving gum health.

Easy Orange Cranberry Sauce Recipe

To make this easy orange cranberry sauce, you will need:

•  3 cups fresh cranberries
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1 cup orange juice
• 1 tsp cinnamon

Pro- tip: If you think that you might want to make homemade cranberry sauce all year long (spoiler alert – after you tried this recipe you will!), you might run into the problem of not being able to find fresh cranberries once the holiday season has passed. The good news is that fresh cranberries freeze really well. You can stock up on bags of fresh cranberries now and just toss them in the freezer to use later.

Easy Orange Cranberry Sauce Recipe

To make the sauce, simply pour the orange juice into a saucepan and turn the burner to medium heat.

Dissolve the sugars in the juice once it has heated up.

Stir in the fresh cranberries and cook until they start to pop. (Should be about 10-12 minutes.) Add cinnamon.

Remove the pan from heat and pour contents into a bowl to cool.

The sauce will thicken as it cools.

Do cranberries really pop when you cook them?

Yes, yes they do! Cranberries have a pretty decent skin on them. When you heat them up, the pressure inside the berries builds until it splits the skin making an audible “pop” noise. Occasionally, some of the heated inside of the berry can squirt out as well, so don’t lean in too close while you ‘re listening to the pops.