cranberry sauce with oomph
November 17, 2011 Raise your hand if growing up, you only ate jellied cranberry sauce from a can?
me me me!
I know some people cringe at the thought of this squishy, gelled, goop, but I must admit I was always a fan.
I’m not sure I even knew what a whole cranberry looked like until a few years ago. I remember the first day I bought cranberries. How could I not, after popping a few in my mouth, RAW. Worst decision ever. Pretty sure I was expecting something like a grape, because I was thinking raisins come from grapes, and grapes are sweet, so cranberries must be too!
After that little number, I decided to use them as a centerpiece, and forgo making any type of sauce.
I guess I also avoid making this sauce because it is loaded with sugar. There is really no way around it! Well, maybe someone has figured out a way, but I haven’t spent much time looking.
Despite having to use quite a bit of sugar, I tried to get a little creative with it. Instead of 1c sugar, which is what most recipes call for, I broke it down a bit. I used a 1/2c of brown rice syrup, which has the same grams of sugar per serving, as sugar, but does not spike your blood sugar levels in the same way. For the other half, I split that between sucanat + unsweetened applesauce. The applesauce was a last minute idea, that I think worked quite well.
This might be an excellent recipe to try using date paste with, for the sweetener. Thanks to Gena’s lovely tutorial and information, it sounds really easy to make.
So what are the components of this cranberry sauce?
- cranberries
- sugar
- water/juice
- orange
- ginger
- cinnamon stick
I thought the ginger would add a nice warmth to the sauce and contrast with the fruity flavor of the cranberries and oranges.
To my surprise, I really enjoyed this and kept spooning it from the container in the fridge. I know I must like something, when I can’t keep out of the leftovers.
After the first trial sent a shiver down my spine, from not adding enough sugar, I adjusted for trial two and it was a keeper.
Cranberry Orange Ginger Sauce [adapted from Simply Recipes]
- 12oz cranberries
- 1/2c water
- 1/2c orange juice
- 1-2 large oranges, peeled
- 1/2c brown rice syrup
- 1/4c unsweetened apple sauce
- 1/4c sucanat/pure cane sugar
- 1/2T minced ginger
- 1/8t salt
- 1 cinnamon stick
- orange zest/toasted walnuts or pecans
- Peel your orange and carefully slice the pith off.
- Cut into about 1” pieces and set aside. Remove seeds if needed.
- In a large saucepan, over medium, add the cranberries, water, orange juice, brown rice syrup, apple sauce and sucanat, ginger, salt, cinnamon stick, and bring to a boil. Stirring every minute or so.
- Reduce heat to simmer for about 10-12min, stirring every minute or so.
- In the last 2 minutes, stir in the orange pieces.
- The consistency will be noticeably thicker than when you started, but it will thicken much more when chilled.
- Cover + chill in the fridge for a few hours before serving.
- Top with orange zest and/or toasted walnuts or pecans.
substitutions/comments: I used 1 1/2 large oranges in my version. Use more or less to your preference. You can sub 1c of pure cane sugar for the brown rice syrup, applesauce + sucanat, if desired. Likewise, you can sub 1c of brown rice syrup/honey/maple syrup. If you don’t have orange juice, use apple juice, or use all water. You can buy jars of minced ginger for about $2 in the Asian food aisle, which is a steal! If you don’t have cinnamon sticks, or want to buy them, just add 1/8t cinnamon to the mix.
I had so much fun shooting this lovely, vibrant sauce!! A nice change of pace from the stuffing + risotto, which were both pretty difficult to capture.
I just made a list of all the recipes I want to make before Thanksgiving and there aren’t enough days before next Thursday! Time to prioritize. DESSERT!
Happy Friday!
Ashley
Recipes, orange, thanksgiving in seasonal
Reader Comments (62)
I can already forsee the leftovers tasting great in some sangria. ;)
I love how you made it less sugary. Cranberry sauce always made my teeth hurt, yuck!
Yum yum yum! I hate that shlurpy stuff in the can!
I've never been a fan of the canned stuff, but I am a huge fan of this version! It is beautiful, and with only 1/4 cup sugar with all those tart cranberries, I'd say you did an amazing job.
I just made cranberry & orange ginger mango chutney earlier this week! Your cranberries look awesome. I love that you used ginger and cinnamon. Me too. Love the kick.
And your photos...so pretty!!!
I love ginger and orange in my cranberry sauce -- I made one similar to this last year, and used 1/4 cup sugar and some orange juice plus stevia to sweeten it...it took a lot of tasting and adding sweetener along the way, but it turned out wonderful...and so much better than canned! I like the idea of apple sauce. In Maine we're really lucky to have local cranberries, too, so it felt good to be supporting a farmer friend!
I love the idea of using orange in the sauce!! I've made recipes that use apple juice to cut down on some of the added sugar but the orange sounds like such a nice complement to the cranberries! Plus, the zest sprinkled on top looks GORGEOUS!!
I love cranberry sauce from a can. Especially if it's in the bowl, still can-shaped, with ridges along the side. Is that strange? Still, your recipe looks pretty amazing...
i sadly will still eat cranberry sauce from a can.. because i'm obsessed with it.
Lol sounds like you're going to be busy in the kitchen between now and next Thursday! I love that you used applesauce instead of just straight sugar. Cranberries are one of the only fruits I can think of that need a little help in the sweetening department!
Cranberry sauce is my favorite Thanksgiving dish. I tried one this year with apples and dried apricots and it was awesome. Some recipes I see use too much sugar to help sweeten them up, but I liked mine this year with the fruits to add sweetness. I've also done it with oranges and orange juice, so good too! It freezes well and then I get it next month again!
i still love the canned stuff, but in recent years i've come to enjoy the real deal too. all these thanksgiving posts are getting me SO EXCITED!
So making this :D
I admit too that the jelly stuff in the can was my childhood favorite. I love making my cranberry sauce now - after all it is my favorite part of Thanksgiving and Christmas suppers! I will try this recipe for Christmas this year, thanks for sharing!
I make my cranberry sauce with clementines! It's so good. I top my sweet potatoes with it at Thanksgiving.
I am making something similar!!! It has clementines, cranberries and a cinnamon stick...but I totally forget what sweetens it...I got the recipe from Whole Foods! Can't go wrong there! :)
Cranberry sauce has always been a favorite of mine! This looks fantastic; I'd love to try making my own this year, instead of the canned "goop" (which, as you suggest, is admittedly good..) ;) I just might have to try this out, thanks!
Love the cranberry/orange flavor combination - I bet that's delicious. Angela just made a Cranberry Orange Vinaigrette that I thought sounded SO delicious.
Like you , I Never liked the cranberries, especiallyt he stuff from the can. I actually never had it from the can, but I buy it every year for my HUsband, maybe this year I'll actually try it. I like homemae cranberry sauce myself. I make it every year and every year I'm the only one who eats it, fine by me!!!
My hand is up - I was a jellied cranberry sauce fan. And by was, I mean I had it last year. :) I haven't found a fresh recipe I really like yet (sad but true). This year, I have a bag of fresh cranberries in the fridge and I'm determined to make one I like!
My grandma makes this exact cranberry sauce! Well, she probably doesn't use sucanat, but it's close. And it's DELICIOUS. I can't wait for Thanksgiving!
My mom always makes homemade cranberry sauce with orange as well. And sometimes, she adds in walnuts too. I have to say though, I've never been a fan of cranberry sauce with Thanksgiving.
I feel like I would love a compote with yogurt or something--but I guess I don't like the sweetness with anything savory. My weird thing, I know! Maybe I just haven't given it a chance though! :)
the photos are beautiful! this sounds awesome (though, like you, I totally have a soft spot for the jellied stuff!)
making this! never did it with ginger or cinnamon, so i'll be adding it :) i grew up eating the canned stuff too, but homemade is soooo easy and good.
How beautiful. This is definitely going on my Thanksgiving menu. I actually really enjoy raw cranberries!
Cranberry sauce from a can = yummy. Homemade cranberry sauce = amazing.
I made something similar to this but it was still too sweet for me. I have to give your version a try. It looks delicious. There's something about cranberry sauce that makes me want to faceplant into it and eat. lol.
it really looks delicious... !
Raising my super high! I would actually bring my own can of the jellied stuff to my grandma's as a kid b/c I would eat the entire thing myself at Thanksgiving. It wasn't until a couple of years ago I finally grew up and started eating the "real" stuff. :)
Your pictures in this post are so pretty! There are some cranberries on sale at my grocery store which I'm of course planning on buying - with no specific plans for them. I have a bad habit of that :) Now I just might have a recipe to use them in! Can you believe that I've never tried cranberry sauce?
That's pretty much the same cranberry sauce that my mom makes! It's the best and it's had the power to convert non cranberry sauce eaters. The ginger really makes it. :-)
i love cranberry sauce!! i think its one of my favorites at thanksgiving..that and sweet potatoes mmm looks awesome!
I totally grew up with the can of jellied cranberry sauce too! We always squished it onto a plate with the rings from the can still intact. Then tradition dictated that the youngest cousin take the plate over to my dad and offer him some cranberry sauce, at which point he would exclaim "I HATE cranberry sauce!" I actually have no memory of ever eating or touching the jiggly canned cranberry sauce, but it always has to make an appearance. My mom makes a cranberry orange relish that's really good, and we also make a cranberry tea to have on Thanksgiving that's amazing. cranberries, orange juice, lemon juice, sugar and cinnamon. I'll have to post about it soon :)
I've never even tried the canned stuff but I did grow up making and eating the full sugar version. A few days ago I posted a recipe that is refined sugar free-sweetened with chopped dates, apples, and pears-and it's delicious!
This is so beautiful Ash! You know I love cranberry & orange :) Such a nice change from the usual.
I still have bad memories of my dad trying to get me to eat the canned stuff...
I like the canned stuff but LOVE homemade. The cinnamon stick + orange = awesome!
I like the canned cranberry sauce too. Though I'd love this homemade version too! I love how you changed the sugars and reduced it a bit with applesauce, such a great idea.
Growing up, my mom never served cranberry sauce...I think being a Type 1 Diabetic had something to do with it. Later in life, the canned, frankly, looked extremely unappealing. I have only made cranberry sauce once...it was really good...but no one seemed to eat it. Now, when I host, I leave it out...no one seems to have noticed. However...your version has me rethinking...perhaps it is time to try a new version! Can't wait to see your dessert! Love that you give adaptations...very helpful!
I suffered through terrible cranberry sauce growing up. It was such an eye opening experience when I finally tried a good recipe. And this looks like a wonderful recipe!
I always add orange zest and apple cider to my cranbery sauce + lots of spices. So goods. Your recipe looks awesome!!
Your photos are awesome! I love the bird's eye view & composition. Sounds delicious
Just give me a bowl of this sauce and I'll be all set. ;)
I never liked the canned version much, but I love fresh cranberry sauce, especially when paired with oranges. This recipe looks beautiful!
This looks so good! I love the combination of cranberry and orange. I've never had canned cranberry sauce - it always scared me a little! My mom always made her own, and I loved it when I was growing up. But, now that I've cut back on my sugar consumption, the old recipe is way too sweet! Thank you for making a recipe with less sugar!
This looks simply delicious! We are having a non-traditional Thanksgiving here; enchiladas and tamales are on the menu, along with a brussels sprout salad with cranberries and pecans. I think a few more cranberries can be used to make this cranberry sauce; it may be just what we need to brighten up our plates!
Wow!!! That sounds like so much fun!! I absolutely looooove tamales and actually just made enchiladas last night. :) Emily [daily garnish] has a super delicious + easy homemade enchilada sauce that we love. mmmm
I never ate a lot of it, but for some reason always enjoyed a little pile of the canned stuff on my plate. :)
Thanks so much Susie!
It definitely looks unappealing...you are so right! Hope you enjoy this version, if you decide to make it!
Haha, I don't know why I liked that stuff! ;)
The added fruit is a great idea!
Loved the story. :) Oooh the tea sounds awesome!