With just three ingredients, this Simple and Easy Cranberry Sauce is the perfect side dish for your holiday table this year. The best part is this homemade cranberry sauce recipe can be ahead of time. There’s nothing better than an easy make-ahead side dish!
I have to pat myself on the back right now. I am pretty darn proud of the fact that I am now about to share with you my third recipe for your holiday table that can be made ahead of time. You heard me right! Between my Twice-Baked Potato Casserole, Sweet Potato Casserole and now this Simple and Easy Cranberry Sauce, you can knock three menu items off your list a full day before your festivities. I know, I know! You can hold the applause!👏🏼
It’s no secret that I LOVE cooking and entertaining and enjoying life. I literally created an entire blog around it. But cooking and entertaining and still having time to enjoy life takes organization. There’s so much to juggle in our day to day lives that being organized and having a plan for any upcoming gathering is a must if only for your own sanity!
It’s even more important to have a plan in place when it comes to hosting over the holidays. There’s so much to worry about: picking recipes, grocery shopping, cleaning the house, setting the table! The list keeps going and going and going. I’ve been keeping myself organized by using my Free Thanksgiving Planner. I have created printables for organizing my guest list, recipes, and even one for meals I can make ahead of time. (Get them free using the form below)
Being able to make menu items ahead of time is one of my ultimate time-saving tips when it comes to hosting a party or gathering at your house. I always, ALWAYS look for recipes that I can make a day or two ahead to allow myself more time on the day of the event. This frees up time for me to focus on the focal points like the turkey on Thanksgiving!🦃
Without further ado, here’s my Simple and Easy Cranberry Sauce.
So what do I need to make Simple and Easy Cranberry Sauce?
12 oz bag fresh cranberries, ½ cup orange juice, ½ cup sugar, 1 cup water
Begin by placing 1 cup of water and ½ cup of sugar in a saucepan over medium heat. You are looking for the sugar to dissolve in the water.
While you are waiting for the sugar to dissolve you’ll want to put your cranberries in a strainer and rinse them off.
Once the sugar has dissolved in the water you can add the rinsed cranberries to the saucepan and cover it with a lid.
As the water comes back up to a boil the cranberries will start to pop open. You want to cook them with the lid on until all the cranberries have popped open, which should take about 5 minutes.
Once all the cranberries have popped open you can remove the lid and turn the temperature down to low/medium-low to prevent the cranberry juice from spraying all over your stove. It can be a mess!
Continue cooking on low/medium-low for about 5 more minutes or until all the cranberries have broken down.
Finally, add ½ cup of orange juice and stir.
Pour in a serving dish, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until it’s time to serve.
We personally like our cranberry sauce cold but feel free to reheat the cranberry sauce before serving it. Do whatever your little heart desires.💜
Told you that was easy! Oh, and there’s one more added bonus. This Simple and Easy Cranberry Sauce can be made up to two days ahead of time. The perfect side to add to your Thanksgiving dinner for its simplicity and deliciousness!
Hope you enjoy it!
- 12 oz bag fresh cranberries
- ½ cup orange juice
- ½ cup sugar
- 1 cup water
- Begin by placing 1 cup of water and ½ cup of sugar in a saucepan over medium heat. You are looking for the sugar to dissolve in the water.
- While you are waiting for the sugar to dissolve you’ll want to put your cranberries in a strainer and rinse them off.
- Once the sugar has dissolved in the water you can add the rinsed cranberries to the saucepan and cover it with a lid.
- As the water comes back up to a boil the cranberries will start to pop open. You want to cook them with the lid on until all the cranberries have popped open, which should take about 5 minutes.
- Once all the cranberries have popped open you can remove the lid and turn the temperature down to low/medium-low to prevent the cranberry juice from spraying all over your stove.
- Continue cooking on low/medium-low for about 5 more minutes or until all the cranberries have broken down.
- Finally, add ½ cup of orange juice and stir.
- Pour in a serving dish, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until it's time to serve.
- We eat this cold but you can reheat it in a saucepan if you prefer it hot just before serving.
Don’t forget to sign up for your Thanksgiving Planner below. 👇🏼
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Sharlene Habermeyer says
Oh my gosh! I LOVE cranberries! (and they are so good for your skin!). This recipe is so much easier than mine–and I love that you can make it ahead of time. Thanksgiving is not Thanksgiving unless there is plenty of cranberries–and the addition of orange juice is spectacular! Your complete Thanksgiving ideas are amazing Tiffany–thank you so much for spending so much time and effort putting this all together for everyone–it will make the holiday 10x more enjoyable!
lakelifestateofmind@gmail.com says
I totally agree about Thanksgiving not being Thanksgiving without cranberry! I’ll even eat the canned variety I love it so much. And you’re absolutely welcome for the recipes and tips. I’m happy to help others have a great Thanksgiving.