Put down the can! This easy make-ahead baked cranberry sauce is so good you’ll never buy the canned variety again. Fresh cranberries, sugar and cinnamon are baked in the oven until the cranberries transform into a delicious, sweet, tart holiday condiment you’ll love. As a final touch you’ll add just enough orange liqueur to make things interesting.
Easy Make-Ahead Baked Cranberry Sauce:
If you don’t have cranberry plans for the holidays yet, you need to make this easy make-ahead baked cranberry sauce. NEED. Tart from the cranberries, sweet from the sugar, a hint of warm spice from the cinnamon, and a touch of citrus from the orange liqueur, it’s a perfect accompaniment to a rich meal. I serve this with turkey, obviously, but it’s also really good with pork roast and my Christmas go-to, Swedish meatballs. And, bonus! It’s beautiful. Double bonus! You can make it way in advance. While it’s not quite as simple as opening a can, you’ll be amazed at how easy this baked cranberry sauce is to make. And since you can make it in advance, it will be one less thing to stress about. Your holiday condiment life will never be the same!
While there’s something to be said for the nostalgia factor of the canned, jellied sauce, there’s not much to be said for the taste compared to homemade. Growing up, cranberries were sort of an afterthought on the holiday table. Of course someone opened the can-o-cranberries and put them on the table, but they were mostly still on the table when dinner was over. Back in these “olden” days, fresh cranberries weren’t as readily available as they are now so it didn’t occur to anyone to make cranberry sauce from scratch. Boy were we missing out!
Fresh is the Best:
These days, fresh cranberries are widely available in the fall and winter seasons. You’ll find bags of the beautiful red berries in the produce department. Look for a bag with firm berries that aren’t split or getting brown. But don’t be fooled by their beauty, cranberries are not snacking berries – they are tart! Cranberries crave sugar to counteract their tartness (at least that’s how I imagine it). To make a delicious sweet, tart cranberry sauce, you’ll need to give the berries that sugar, plus a little cinnamon, a touch of salt and a splash of orange liqueur. The orange liqueur is optional, but not really. I highly recommend it! (Plus, you can use the rest of the orange liqueur for festive red wine sangria. Incentive!)
Prepping and Baking:
You really won’t find an easier recipe. First you’ll add the fresh cranberries, sugar, salt and cinnamon to a small baking dish. Next you’ll stir it all to combine, and finally you’ll put it in the oven. That’s it! And you didn’t believe me when I said it was easy.
Your cranberry sauce will bake for about a hour, you can stir it once after about 30 minutes, just to make sure the sugar is well distributed. While the cranberries bake, the most amazing thing happens. The berries start to burst as they heat up, releasing not only their delicious juice, but the natural pectin they hold too. This pectin will thicken the cranberries into a “jammy” consistency, which is exactly what you want in your cranberry sauce.
Once you can see that most of the cranberries have opened and the sauce has the right consistency, your easy make-ahead baked cranberry sauce is done. Well, done baking anyway. You’ve got one more delicious step to complete. When the cranberry sauce is just out of the oven, you’ll add the orange liqueur to the baking dish. The liqueur will bubble up a bit as it hits the hot cranberries and the most amazing scent will waft up. Quickly stir the liqueur into the sauce. Now the sauce is really done!
Cool your cranberry sauce to room temperature, then store it in a covered glass, ceramic or plastic (basically anything except metal) container in the fridge until you need it.
A Sweet, Tart, Delicious Condiment:
Bring on the turkey! Or pork roast! Or Swedish meatballs! Or Black Friday turkey sandwich! Whatever you’re making for the holidays, this easy make-ahead cranberry sauce is sure to be a hit. You could even make a double batch and put half in a pretty mason jar. This would be a perfect homemade gift for your favorite turkey loving friend.
Actually, I’ve got an idea. Let’s not segregate cranberry sauce to the holidays, let’s make it for special meals all year round!
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Easy Make-Ahead Baked Cranberry Sauce
- Prep Time: 5 mins
- Cook Time: 60 mins
- Total Time: 1 hour 5 minutes
Description
Put the can back on the shelf! This easy make-ahead baked cranberry sauce will change your holiday condiment life. Fresh cranberries, sugar and cinnamon are baked in the oven until the cranberries have magically transformed into a thick, sweet, tart sauce. As a final touch you’ll add just enough orange liqueur to make things interesting.
Ingredients
- 3 cups of fresh cranberries
- 1 1/4 cup of granulated sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 cup orange liqueur, optional (but not really). I’ve used Patron Citronage and Grand Marnier
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Rinse and drain the cranberries.
- Mix all ingredients except the orange liqueur in an oven proof glass or ceramic dish (Pyrex or Corningware).
- Cover and bake for 45 minutes. Take the dish out and stir the cranberries, making sure to stir any granulated sugar into the cranberries to help it dissolve. Cover and put back in the oven for another 15 – 20 minutes. The sauce should be thick and the cranberries should be soft and most of them will have popped open.
- Carefully place the hot dish on a heat proof surface. Add the 1/4 cup of orange liqueur and stir for a few minutes until it’s fully incorporated into the sauce.
- Once the pan has cooled down enough to handle, into a covered glass or plastic container and store in the refrigerator. Enjoy with turkey, meatballs or pork!
Notes
You can make the cranberry sauce a week or two in advance.
