Fresh Cranberry Sauce with Orange Juice

12oz bag fresh cranberries

1 cup orange juice

½ cup light brown sugar

Water as needed

Rinse cranberries in cold water, drain, place in 3 quart or larger pot.

In a medium sauce pan over high heat, bring the orange juice and sugar to a boil. Mix add ins at this time if desired. Add the cranberries and return to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium and boil gently for 10 to 12 minutes, until most of cranberries have burst open. Turn off heat.

Use a fork or potato masher to pop the remainder of the cranberries, if desired. If you prefer extra-smooth cranberry sauce, blend the mixture in a blender until smooth after it has cooled completely. You may need to add some water at this point to thin out sauce to desired thickness.

Let the sauce sit at room temperature about 30 minutes. It will naturally thicken as it cools.

Transfer sauce to a serving bowl. Cover and chill until ready to serve.

Optional add ins: ¼ tsp cinnamon, ¼ tsp nutmeg, 1 tsp vanilla, chopped pecans, Orange zest

Substitutions: Sugar for ¼ cup maple syrup, date syrup, coconut sugar or honey.

No sugar option: omit sugar and increase orange juice to 1½ cups.

Page footer