Chunky Cranberry Orange Sauce

Fresh and dried berries flavored with tangerine and orange

The finished sauce

Bright berries floating in orange juice

Just in time for Thanksgiving this week, I’m sharing my tart and chunky version of cranberry sauce. I was surprised how easy it is to make cranberry sauces from scratch – no more store bought for me. I also find it fun as the cranberries vary quite a bit in sizes and colors – I enjoy handling the berries and admiring the full range of reds from speckled white to pink to coral to bright red to deep, dark crimson or burgundy. Cranberries are eye candy to me.

I always make this side a day or two in advance. Stores well in the fridge in an airtight container. Making this gets me in the mood for Thanksgiving in general and specifically for more food prep and the heavier cooking to come later in the week. I feel good about crossing something off on my long to-do list. I also like admiring the jewel-like color every time I open the fridge. In addition to serving up with my turkey feast, I also use this sauce as a filling for my Orange Cranberry Wacky Cake, with orange buttercream frosting. Part of my leftovers routine – just as we’re finishing the last of the vegan pumpkin pie we can move on to this sweet treat. I’ll post that recipe shortly.

This cranberry sauce recipe is very flexible. And does not utilize traditional sugar. I like my sauce a bit on the tart and tangy side, not too sweet. The berries get some sweetness from simmering in orange juice, most sweetness from mixing in orange marmalade, and some sweetness from tangerine chunks & craisins, which also add texture. If you like a sweeter sauce, you can either mix in additional orange marmalade at the end or you can add sugar into the orange juice to dissolve at the beginning. I was specifically trying to go lower sugar and before knowing any better, actually believed that simmering in orange juice would add sufficient sweetener. Optimist that I am. After one mouth puckering reality check, I can assure you that cranberries are even more sour that you may have thought. Extra sweetener is essential! I love orange marmalade and almost always have some in my pantry so it was an immediate fix. It’s already thick, sticky, sweet and has the added bonus of orange rind – no need for zesting. 

And while we’re still on the topic of cranberries, check out this light hearted and humorous holiday picture book, Cranberry Thanksgiving by Wende & Harry Devlín. The story takes place on Thanksgiving Day, by a cranberry bog, features a feast, a robbery & a chase, and includes a recipe for “grandmother’s famous” cranberry bread. Delightful read aloud.

Chunky Cranberry Orange Sauce

Ingredients:

2 cups fresh cranberries

1 cup orange juice

2 tsp balsamic vinegar

1 cup tangerine sections, chopped (or 1 can mandarin oranges, drained and broken up with fork)

1/2 cup dried cranberries

2-4 Tbsps orange marmalade – to taste

Directions:

• Measure out and sort the berries. Pick out and discard any with obvious bruises or any puckering. Cranberry sizes and coloring will vary widely, but all should be very firm to the touch with little to no give at all. Soft or mushy berries should be thrown out.

• Pour cranberries into saucepan. Cover with orange juice. Add vinegar. Swirl around in the pan. Bring up to medium heat so there is bubbling around the edges.

Cranberries & OJ

Cranberries popping & sauce brownish

Finished sauce, thick & crimson

•  Simmer for ~15-20 mins. Swirl the pan occasionally or stir with a wooden spoon. Cranberries will start popping and breaking down as the juice reduces and thickens. The mixture will start out as distinctly separate – cranberries floating in orange juice. As the cranberries start to pop, the color will turn brownish. As the cranberries break down and the OJ reduces, the color will change to deep dark crimson. Consistency should get thicker, like a jam. When done, a wooden spoon scraped across the bottom of the pan will reveal a clean bottom and fill back in slowly. Stay close to the pan for the last 5-10 mins of simmering to stir frequently and assess for doneness.

• Take off heat. Stir in orange sections, break up with fork or spoon for smaller chunks. Stir in dried cranberries.

• Add in 2 Tbsp of orange marmalade. When cool enough to taste, sample a little. If not quite sweet enough, keep adding orange marmalade to taste.

Chill. Serve as a side to accompany turkey or veggies.

ALLERGY INFO: contains none of the top 8 allergens