I’ve always thought that homemade versions of classic recipes taste much better than store-bought versions, and cranberry sauce is a perfect example of this. Although I loved the canned jellied cranberry sauce that we always ate on Thanksgiving when I was young, after I tried making cranberry sauce from scratch one year, I was hooked.
Now I have a whole list of re-invented, healthier recipes for the holidays, most of which call for real food ingredients, little prep, and a lot less sugar.
Naturally Sweetened Cranberry Sauce
Most homemade cranberry sauce recipes call for a lot of sugar… enough that I’d classify cranberry sauce a dessert and not a side dish!
For those who haven’t tried them, plain cranberries are very tart, so I wasn’t sure how much it would be possible to reduce the sugar and still have an enjoyable sauce. I shouldn’t have worried, because unrefined natural sweeteners (honey) and delicious applesauce filled in the gaps.
This recipe still has more natural sugars than we normally eat, but is a much healthier option than the ones that actually contain refined sugar and is a delicious treat for Thanksgiving dinner.
If you’re hosting Thanksgiving this year, also check out my healthy versions of green bean casserole, sweet potato casserole, butternut squash soup, and root vegetable stuffing.
Cranberry Sauce Recipe
Ingredients
- 24 oz fresh cranberries
- ¾ cup pineapple juice or orange juice
- ½ cup no sugar added applesauce
- ½ cup water
- juice and zest of one orange
- 3-4 TBSP honey or to taste optional
Instructions
- Put cranberries, pineapple juice, applesauce and water in a sauce pan and bring to a boil.
- Reduce to medium heat and stir constantly until the cranberries start to explode (about 10-15 minutes).
- Reduce to a simmer and add the juice and zest to the cranberry mixture.
- Simmer 10-15 minutes and remove from heat.
- Cool completely and store in fridge at least 4 hours but preferably overnight before serving.
Notes
Nutrition
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Do you eat cranberry sauce? What foods do you always have at Thanksgiving? Share below!
This year I made mine with coconut sugar and just a little splash of kombucha. It was delicious!
Great recipe. I made this for Thanksgiving, and it’s delicious. The orange really brightens the flavor. It really was quite tart, so I added a small amount of sugar. I used orange juice, next time I’m excited to try it with the pineapple juice.
Made this and my family loved it! I did have to add a bit of honey for their taste but they all gave it a thumbs up! Thanks again, Katie!
is any stainless steel pan ok? does stainless make cranberries taste metallic?
I made this today (Thanksgiving morning) and changed it up a bit: I increased the juice so that I didn’t need any water (so juice was 1 1/4 cup) and used orange mango juice instead of plain orange. I also added in about 1-2 tsp agar agar flakes to thicken it up some more, and 1/3 cup maple syrup (I thought it was 1/4 cup, lol), and it turned out PERFECT. This was one of the easiest recipes! Thank you 🙂
Ok, maybe this is a silly question, but should I add the honey while its cooking? Or wait until I remove it from the heat? First time making cranberry sauce.
don’t know if you ever received an answer to your question. I’m going to try this recipe and that would be something I would wonder about also.
When are you supposed to add in the honey? 🙂
Hi.
I understand that the pineapple juice is being used to replace the sugar/balance the tart, but we can’t do pineapple. Can coconut sugar be used? Or would you recommend orange juice in place f the pineapple juice?
Experiment and see what works for you 😉
Could you also add dried crasins and nuts?
Katie,
You can add a little baking soda to cut the tartness in fruit and therefore use less sugar. When I make homemade cranberries, I use one bag of cranberries, 1 c. water, 1/4 tsp. baking soda, and approximately 1/4 c. honey. You can adjust the ingredients until you find the blend of sweet-tart that your family likes. 🙂
Hi Mama,
Do you think this would freeze well?
Thanks for all you do.
I haven’t tried…