Canned Cranberry Sauce That Tastes Homemade

I laugh as I write this because when I first met my husband, he insisted on Ocean Spray canned jellied cranberry sauce for every Thanksgiving dinner….you know, the jellied sauce…the kind you slice that shows the outline of the can?!

His taste buds have evolved since then, but I will say I can’t go through a holiday season without buying him a can of it and putting it– straight from the can–on the holiday table!

We laugh about it, but there is really nothing wrong with canned cranberry sauce! All it needs is a little bit of doctoring up to make cranberry sauce from a can taste like homemade!

Serve this canned sauce alongside your turkey, mashed potatoes, and these amazing crack green beans! It’s also divine on leftover turkey sandwiches!

• Such an EASY fix to turn canned cranberry sauce into your own special homemade sauce.
• Only uses FIVE ingredients and takes no time to make!
• The perfect complement to your holiday dinner table.
• SO many other uses for this sauce aside from the holidays!
• You can use whole-berry canned cranberry sauce or the jellied version.

You’ll need the following ingredients to make this kicked-up Canned Cranberry Sauce Recipe:

Canned Cranberry Sauce: You have two choices when you buy a can of cranberry space: Whole Cranberry Sauce and Jellied Sauce. EITHER will work in this recipe! I prefer whole berry, but honestly, there isn’t a lot of difference in taste or texture between the two! Just sayin’.

Maple Syrup: Canned cranberry sauce on its own is always sweetened. But the maple syrup adds a deeper, rich flavor. All you need is a touch!

Fresh Oranges: The juice of one big orange + the zest is the perfect tartness to balance out the sweetness of the cranberry sauce.

Here are some quick visual instructions. Remember that full instructions with the exact ingredients will be in the recipe card below!

Step 1: Add canned cranberry sauce to a medium pan. Using a wooden spoon, break it up a bit. Then, add all other ingredients and stir to combine.

Step 2: Bring to a boil, then simmer 1-2 minutes, stirring, until flavors marry together. Serve warm, cold or at room temperature.

⭐️ CONFIDENCE TIP ⭐️

• Storage: If you are making this cranberry sauce recipe ahead, store it in an air-tight container in the fridge OR covered it tightly with plastic wrap for up to 5 days. Store leftover cranberry sauce the same way.

• Reheating: If you want to reheat your cranberry sauce, place it in a saucepan over the stove and heat through.

• Freezing: Cool completely. Then transfer cranberry sauce to a large zip-top bag and freeze flat for up to 6 months.

Here are a few other things you might want to add to your homemade canned cranberry sauce to doctor it up a bit:

• Chopped nuts
• Ground ginger
• Port
• Brown sugar
• Honey
• Apples
• Raisins/dried fruit

This is totally a personal preference! Some people like hot cranberry sauce and others like it chilled. My personal preference is serving this cranberry sauce at room temperature.

Canned cranberry sauce is already thick on it’s own. This cranberry sauce recipe with the added ingredients will continue to thicken as it simmers on the stove. No need to do anything further.

Although cranberry sauce is a popular side dish along side Thanksgiving turkey, you can also use it in so many other ways (not just around the holidays, either!)

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TOOLS FOR THIS RECIPE

Check out all of my kitchen essentials in my Amazon store!

Citrus Juicer: Super handy!

Wooden Spoon: Love this set.

My favorite medium sized pan: Perfect pan and I love the color! Super easy to clean and doubles as a dutch oven.

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