If you’re looking for the perfect homemade cranberry sauce recipe, I have 4 different variations for you to choose from! These are ALL easy and delicious! 
Heads up: This post was originally published in 2017. I’m republishing in 2020 to update some formatting, but the recipes and blog post remain the same. Enjoy!
Meghan and I had a conversation yesterday about Thanksgiving dinner. We heard a bit on the radio where the hosts were talking about which dish they could take away from their Thanskgiving feast that they’d never miss.
Meghan wanted to know which one I’d choose and I couldn’t for the life of me decide. She picked squash. Is she even my daughter?! We couldn’t have more opposite taste buds.
In the end, I said the turkey could go. Let’s be honest. Thanksgiving is all about the side dishes. Am I right? Who’s with me?
One dish I’d never want to get rid of is the cranberry sauce. Oh, sweet cranberry sauce. Don’t you just love it?
This year I’m bringing you four different Homemade Cranberry Sauce recipes to choose from! Homemade cranberry sauce is so easy to make and it’s fun to be creative and change the flavors ever so slightly.
Think of your fresh cranberries as a blank slate and read on to figure out which flavor profile you want them to take on. Have fun creating the perfect Homemade Cranberry Sauce!
Homemade Cranberry Sauce Recipe: Basic Cranberry Sauce
The first recipe is for basic Homemade Cranberry Sauce recipe. This is the most traditional, so if your family doesn’t like veering away from the norm, stick with this one. 
Basic Cranberry Sauce is made with fresh cranberries, water, sugar, and a touch of orange zest. Very simple, but still delicious. You can use regular sugar, or an unrefined sugar like Sucanat. 
Maple Orange Cranberry Sauce
In this version, we swap out some of the water for orange juice and instead of sugar, we use maple syrup. A touch of cinnamon adds to the overall flavor and compliments it well.
My kids declared this version their favorite and even though it was different than traditional cranberry sauce, I really loved it, too! 
Cran-Apple Sauce
Apples are a perfect addition to your cranberry sauce. Cranberries are so tart that the apples help balance that tartness even more.
Honey replaces some of the sugar and fresh lemon juice and zest adds a bright finish.
Homemade Cranberry Sauce with some Heat
This last recipe for Homemade Cranberry Sauce brings some heat to the Thanksgiving table! Some families just like everything spicy and there are so many sweet dishes included on most Thanksgiving menus, I think adding a little spice is a great idea.
This recipe is very similar to basic cranberry sauce, but overall it has less sugar, a little maple syrup, and a touch of ancho chili powder. It’s not enough heat so every taste burns your mouth, but it starts with the sweet flavor and then ends with a bite. I loved this!
If you’re planning your Thanksgiving dinner, check out this Stress-Free Thanksgiving Menu. You’ve got this!
If you make one of these Homemade Cranberry Sauce recipes, or any Happy Healthy Mama recipe, I would LOVE to see it! Please take a pic and share it on Instagram or the Happy Healthy Mama Facebook page and tag me @happyhealthymama and use the hashtag #happyhealthymamarecipes to be featured.
Also, if you try it, would you mind rating the recipe? It’s VERY helpful for me and other readers if the recipes have ratings and reviews. I appreciate you!
Keep scrolling for the printable recipes!
PrintHomemade Cranberry Sauce Recipe: 4 Ways
Whether you like a basic, traditional cranberry sauce or you want to try something different, one of these recipes will be perfect for you!
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 12 servings 1x
- Category: recipes
- Method: stovetop
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegan
Ingredients
Basic Cranberry Sauce
- 12 ounces fresh cranberries (1 bag)
- 1 cup water
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon orange zest
Maple Orange Cranberry Sauce
- 12 ounces fresh cranberries (1 bag)
- 1/2 cup water
- 1/2 cup orange juice
- 1 cup maple syrup
- 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
- orange zest for garnish (optional)
Cran-Apple Sauce
- 12 ounces fresh cranberries (1 bag)
- 2 apples, peeled, cored, and diced
- 1 cup water
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/4 cup honey
- 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
- fresh lemon zest, for garnish
Cranberry Sauce with Heat
- 12 ounces fresh cranberries (1 bag)
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon ancho chili powder
Instructions
- Place all of the ingredients except citrus zest in a heavy, medium saucepan, and bring to a boil, stirring often.
- . Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until most of cranberries burst, stirring occasionally, about 10 minutes.
- Stir in the any citrus zest in the recipe ingredients and remove from heat.
- Sauce will thicken a bit more as it cools. Serve chilled and garnish with citrus zest, if desired.
Notes
*I like this best made 1-2 days ahead of time.
*Nutritional information is based on the basic recipe, but others will be similar.
Nutrition
- Calories: 136
- Sugar: 33 grams
- Fat: 0.3 grams
- Carbohydrates: 36 grams
- Fiber: 1.5 grams
- Protein: 0 grams
Keywords: homemade cranberry sauce recipe
I will be trying all of these, thanks for the recipes!
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