• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Home
  • DIY Projects
    • Homemade Bath and Body
    • Sewing
    • Flower Crafts/Decor
    • Thrift Store/Vintage
  • Gardening
    • Flower Gardens
    • Container Gardening
    • Houseplants
    • Indoor Gardening
    • Landscaping
    • DIY Garden Art
  • Decorate
    • Room Makeovers
    • Spring Decor
    • Summer Decor
    • Fall Decor
    • Winter Decor
    • Home Decor Projects
  • Recipes
    • Breakfast Recipes
    • Lunch Recipes
    • Dinner Recipes
    • Dessert
    • Salad Recipes
    • Soups and Stews
    • Side Dish Recipes
    • Appetizers and Snacks
    • Healthy Recipes
  • Holidays
    • Valentine's Day
    • Easter
    • Mother's Day
    • Halloween
    • Thanksgiving
    • Christmas
Hearth and Vine
menu icon
go to homepage
subscribe
search icon
Homepage link
  • Home
  • About Hearth and Vine
  • DIY Projects
    • ...Flower/Gardening Crafts
    • ... Bath and Body
    • ...Sewing/Fabric Crafts
    • ...Thrift Store/Upcycle
  • Gardening
    • ...Flower Gardens
    • ...Container Gardening
    • ...Indoor Gardening
    • ...DIY Garden Art
  • Decorate
    • ...Home Decor Projects
    • ...Spring Decor
    • ...Summer Decor
    • ...Fall Decor
    • ...Winter Decor
    • ...Room Makeovers
  • Recipes
    • ...Appetizers and Snacks
    • ...Dinner Recipes
    • ...Side Dish Recipes
    • ...Salad Recipes
    • ...Dessert
    • ...Drinks
  • Holidays
    • ...Valentine's Day
    • ...Easter
    • ...Mother's Day
    • ...Halloween
    • ...Thanksgiving
    • ...Christmas
  • Subscribe
  • Instagram
    • Email
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
  • ×

    Home » Recipes

    Fresh Cranberry Sauce with Orange Zest

    November 5, 2021 by Patti Estep 2 Comments

    Jump to Recipe
    Bowl of cranberry sauce over a pot of fresh cranberries.
    Bowl of cranberry sauce.
    Homemade Cranberry Sauce in a bowl

    Learn how using fresh cranberries with orange zest makes a delicious homemade holiday side dish that goes perfectly with turkey and stuffing.

    Bowl of homemade cranberry sauce.

    My husband loves to cook at Thanksgiving. He is the one who makes the turkey, the stuffing, pan dripping gravy, and a delicious cranberry sauce.

    Pot of cranberries simmering.

    What You'll Need

    • Fresh Cranberries
    • Sugar
    • An Orange
    • Ground Cinnamon
    • Ground Cloves
    Cranberries cooking in a pot on the stove.

    Cranberry Sauce vs Cranberry Relish

    Cranberry sauce and cranberry relish are two very different things. Cranberry sauce is cooked with sugar and spices where cranberry relish is typically raw and made in a food processer usually with much less sugar so it's very tart. In my opinion, both are delicious.

    Can You Make Cranberry Sauce Ahead?

    Yes, in fact, that's one of the great things about this dish. It actually needs a couple of hours to set up in the refrigerator so making it the day before Thanksgiving is a good idea. In fact, you could make it a few days ahead of time.

    Can You Freeze Cranberry Sauce?

    I wouldn't. More than likely it will get watery when you thaw it. However, you can keep leftovers in the fridge for a week or two, and chances are they will get eaten well before then.

    Cranberry sauce on turkey.

    Other Uses for Cranberry Sauce

    Of course, it's one of the best side dishes for turkey during the holidays but you can also use it for the following:

    • As a topping for a leftover turkey sandwich
    • With yogurt or ice cream
    • As a side with other protein, in particular pork.
    • As a filling for baked goods, pies, muffins etc.

    Bowl of chilled fresh homemade cranberry sauce.

    Sometimes homemade is best and since you can make this ahead there's really no reason why you can't add a homemade fresh cranberry sauce to the menu.

    Patti signature

    More Great Fresh Cranberry Recipes

    • Cranberry Pear Galette
    • Cranberry Shortbread Cookies
    • Cranberry Dump Cake
    • Cranberry Oatmeal Bars
    Bowl of homemade cranberry sauce.

    Homemade Cranberry Sauce Recipe with Orange Zest

    Patti Estep
    Learn how using fresh cranberries with orange zest makes a delicious homemade holiday side dish that goes perfectly with turkey and stuffing.
    5 from 1 vote
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe
    Prep Time 5 mins
    Cook Time 10 mins
    Additional Time 2 hrs
    Total Time 2 hrs 15 mins
    Course Side Dish Recipes
    Cuisine American
    Servings 4 cups
    Calories 83 kcal

    Ingredients
      

    • 12 oz bag fresh cranberries
    • 1.5 cups water
    • 1.5 cups granulated sugar
    • 1 tablespoon fresh orange zest
    • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
    • 1/4 teaspoon ground clove

    Instructions
     

    • Rinse cranberries. Pick over and throw away any unsightly berries.
    • In a large pot heat water, sugar, cinnamon, and cloves over medium heat.
    • Bring to a boil and simmer for 5 minutes.
    • Add orange zest and reduce heat.
    • Add berries and simmer for about 5 minutes or until the skin pops and the berries look translucent.
    • Skim and discard any foam.
    • Transfer to a serving bowl and refrigerate to chill for 2 hours before serving.

    Nutrition

    Serving: 1gCalories: 83kcalCarbohydrates: 22gSodium: 2mgFiber: 1gSugar: 20g
    Keyword cranberry sauce with orange zest, fresh cranberry sauce, homemade cranberry sauce
    Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

    More Recipes

    • Hot Corn Dip with Cream Cheese
    • Cooking with Parsley - Growing, Harvesting and Recipes
    • Sweet Potato Carrot Ginger Soup
    • Hearth and Vine Top Posts for 2022

    About Patti Estep

    Patti is the creator of Hearth and Vine, a home and garden blog filled with projects to inspire your creative side. She loves crafting, gardening, decorating and entertaining at her home in Pennsylvania. When she is not working on a project at home or searching for treasures at nurseries and thrift stores with her girlfriends, you’ll probably find her with family and friends, at a restaurant, or home party enjoying new and different food adventures.

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Cindi

      November 05, 2021 at 8:10 am

      Hi! I am new to your blog and really enjoying what I have seen so far. I am also a PA lady (living in VA now by way of South Carolina). I think cranberry sauce is my favorite Thanksgiving dish ( ok I eat too much pumpkin pie and a lot of mashed potatoes too!). I make my own but I use maple syrup instead of the sugar and oj instead of water and it is delicious! Peace.

      Reply
      • Patti Estep

        November 05, 2021 at 9:37 am

        Hi Cindi! That sounds really good too. We'll have to try it. Thanks for sharing.

        Reply

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Recipe Rating




    Primary Sidebar

    Follow Me

    • Email
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter

    Patti profile pic

    Hi! I'm Patti

    Join me to create lots of fun DIY projects including crafts, gardening, home decor and tasty recipes.

    more about me

    Popular Posts

    Blue jean crossover bag

    DIY Crossbody Bag from Jeans

    tabletop water gardens

    How to Make an Indoor Water Garden

    Echievera planter

    What to do With a Stretched Succulent

    Fabric bowl covers in 3 prints

    How to Make Fabric Bowl Covers

    Collage of flowers including russian sage, pink hydrangeas, coneflower and yarrow.

    10+ Long Blooming Plants

    Chicken black bean tortilla casserole

    Chicken Black Bean Casserole Recipe

    Footer

    ^ back to top

    About
    Privacy Policy
    Disclosure Policy

    Sign Up Here!
    for our weekly
    newsletter &
    special offers

    • Shop
    • Web Stories

    As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. i.e. as an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

    Copyright © 2021 Hearth and Vine