Side Dish Sauces and Condiments Sauces Cranberry Sauce Recipes 9 Quick and Easy Homemade Cranberry Sauces By Vanessa Greaves Vanessa Greaves Vanessa Greaves is a Senior Editor at Allrecipes with nearly two decades of experience helping home cooks gain confidence in the kitchen. A self-taught cook who grew up reading cookbooks for fun, Vanessa lives and breathes the challenges faced by busy everyday cooks to get dinner on the table. Allrecipes' editorial guidelines Updated on October 26, 2023 Close Photo: Allrecipes Magazine Seriously, people. Homemade cranberry sauce is the easiest thing to make on your Thanksgiving menu, yet it's so pretty it'll look like you worked that kitchen hard. You can make cranberry sauce days ahead of time and chill it in the fridge until Thanksgiving. (In fact, the flavor is much better when you do.) And it's easy to transport over the river and through the woods when to grandmother's house you go. So let's do this quick, easy, pretty, portable, make-ahead cranberry sauce thing. 01 of 09 Fresh Cranberry Sauce View Recipe baking nana This is as easy as it gets. Put it all in a pot and simmer until you hear the cranberries pop, then keep cooking for a few more minutes until it's as thick as you like. When you chill it, the sauce will thicken up even more. "A great side dish for Thanksgiving dinner. It can be used as filling for cranberry/cream cheese tarts and also makes a great topping on bagels, corn bread, or cheesecake," says Josef Plavjak. "The pectin in the cranberries will make the cranberry sauce gel as it cools." 02 of 09 Cranberry Sauce View Recipe CookinBug Orange juice replaces water in this five-star recipe. "This was so easy and so delicious, my entire family, who normally skips the cranberry sauce, couldn't get enough," says Jboyer5. 03 of 09 Holiday Cranberry Sauce View Recipe larkspur Cinnamon, cloves, and allspice give cranberry sauce extra holiday flair. "This was the first time I attempted to make cranberry sauce from scratch, and I was blown away," says heatherfeather. "The spices are perfect. I pulsed it slightly in the blender to make it a bit more saucy. I've put it on everything from waffles to a peanut butter (and cranberry sauce) sandwich." 04 of 09 Cranberry Sauce with Orange Juice, Honey, and Pears View Recipe Photo by Allrecipes. Orange juice, pears, and honey sweeten this sauce. TrishTheDish says, "The cranberry sauce was a hit at our Thanksgiving dinner!" 05 of 09 Tangerine-Cranberry Sauce View Recipe Buckwheat Queen "I love the flavor of this sauce," says lizzieb8888. "I increased the tangerine juice to three tangerines, and the flavor really comes through." 25 Non-Traditional Thanksgiving Dinner Ideas 06 of 09 Nutty Cranberry Sauce View Recipe Add texture to traditional cranberry sauce with chopped walnuts or any nut you love to crunch on. 07 of 09 Cranberry Raspberry Sauce View Recipe lutzflcat "Unlike many cranberry sauces, you really taste the fruit, not just sugar, in this recipe," says lutzflcat. "The two fruits partner well, and the reduced sugar is a definite plus. Used a potato masher to lightly crush the fruit." 08 of 09 Maple Syrup Cranberry Sauce View Recipe Allrecipes Magazine "You must use real maple syrup, " says Red Dove. "It makes a big difference in the recipe. I made this exactly as written, and this is the best cranberry sauce that I have come across in 50 years." Lemon juice and brandy add the slightest bite. 09 of 09 Tangy Cranberry Sauce View Recipe lutzflcat This cranberry sauce's secret ingredient? Horseradish. "Yes! Finally, a cranberry sauce that isn't sickly sweet," Clare Fisher says. "Love it." See our entire collection of Cranberry Sauce Recipes. 9 Make-Ahead Thanksgiving Sides That Hold Up in the Freezer Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Tell us why! Other Submit