Maple Cranberry Sauce is made with maple syrup instead of white sugar for even more fall flavor! Easy homemade cranberry sauce recipe!
The dinner rolls and the cranberry sauce have always been my favorite parts of Thanksgiving dinner. The turkey is nice, but the things that I get the most excited about are the rolls and the cranberries.
This Maple Cranberry Sauce is a nice twist on the usual whole berry cranberry sauce. The maple and the orange just give it a little extra depth, but the cranberry flavor still shines through.
Plus, it’s extremely easy to make, and it only takes about 15 minutes to whip up.
“Perfect! The maple syrup is just lovely in this recipe. Thank you for sharing!” – Linda
How to make maple cranberry sauce
Here you’ll find step-by-step photos showing how to make this recipe. The full recipe, including ingredients, is given below.
Step 1: Add the maple syrup, water, orange juice, and cranberries to a saucepan. You’ll want at least a medium saucepan because the mixture will bubble up as it cooks.
Step 2: Bring it to a boil. Reduce the heat, and simmer for 10 minutes.
Step 3: Remove the cranberry sauce from the heat and stir in the orange zest.
Step 4: Let the cooked cranberry sauce come to room temperature and then cover and chill before serving.
Recipe Tips!
- Chilling: The cranberry sauce will set up as it chills, and it’s best stored in the fridge.
- Freezing: Let the cooked cranberry sauce come to room temperature. Store in a resealable freezer-safe container for up to 1 month.
- Serving suggestions: Cranberry sauce goes well with traditional Thanksgiving dishes like turkey and dinner rolls. This cranberry sauce also goes really well with ham. I have also used this cranberry sauce when I make my cranberry orange pound cake.
Storage
Store any leftover maple cranberry sauce in an airtight container in the refrigerator. It will keep for up to 4 days when properly stored in the fridge.
More cranberry recipes!
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Maple Cranberry Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 cup real maple syrup
- ½ cup water
- ¼ cup fresh orange juice
- 3 cups fresh cranberries
- 1 teaspoon orange zest
Instructions
- Bring maple syrup, water, orange juice, and cranberries to a boil in a saucepan.1 cup real maple syrup, ½ cup water, ¼ cup fresh orange juice, 3 cups fresh cranberries
- Reduce heat, and simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Remove from heat, and stir in orange zest.1 teaspoon orange zest
- Pour cranberries into a serving dish, and let come to room temperature.
- Cover, and chill until ready to serve.
Notes
Nutrition
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Originally published 11/19/14. This post is regularly updated.
Reader Interactions
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Comments & Reviews
Paige says
Yum! I have never made cranberry sauce before, and this was so fun and easy to make. 100% making it again, but I think I would skip the orange zest next time!
Marcia says
Instead of the water I used Apple Cider (not vinegar) and cooked it just the same way, except I added 1 TBL of “good” Balsamic Vinegar at the end.
Kate says
Those sound like delicious changes! Thank you for sharing them.
Judy says
Love the maple syrup in this recipe. We have been looking for lower glycemic counts and this recipe is perfect. Great flavors! Will make this a part of our holiday tradition.
Kate says
Thank you! I’m glad you liked it. Thanks for commenting! =)
Linda says
Perfect! The maple syrup is just lovely in this recipe. Thank you for sharing!
Lil says
I always use brown sugar, but your recipe with maple syrup is Delicious. I just finish making the cranberry sauce and my brothers were yumming, yumming .. away……
Kate says
Thank you! =) Brown sugar sounds good! I’ll have to try that, too.
Joanna @ Everyday Made Fresh says
I love how you used maple syrup as opposed to sugar in this. It’s the exact recipe I use, however I use sugar. I know how I’m changing it this year! Thank you!!
Kate says
Thanks! I hope you like it! =)