Fresh Baked Cranberry Sauce
An easy, make ahead cranberry sauce that bakes itself in the oven. Lightly sweetened with maple syrup and orange juice, it’s the perfect Thanksgiving side.
To help make Thanksgiving as easy as possible, I love to make a few sides in advance. It’s something I’ve learned makes the holidays more bearable because if I don’t do this, I get so frazzled…and something inevitably burns. I have a couple of go to recipes I just get out of the way early in the week and then it’s one less thing that needs to take up space on the stovetop. My Miso Mushroom Gravy is one I like to prep in advance along with this baked cranberry sauce. It’s one of those, set it and forget it recipes, that I love!
Why You’ll Love This Flavorful Cranberry Sauce
- Spiced with fresh cinnamon and vanilla then followed with a splash of fresh orange juice to further enhance the sweetness of these cranberries.
- This is a really nice hands free recipe. You just put your ingredients in a dish pan and place in the oven to bake. No stirring required as it bakes. Then mix in your orange juice and salt at the end.
- Easy to customize to your preference. You can add more sweetener if you choose at the very end.
Key Ingredients and Substitutions
- Cranberries: This works for fresh or frozen cranberries. Fresh cranberries with nothing added to them are naturally very tart and bitter.
- Maple Syrup: I love the flavor of maple syrup and it’s great here because it helps keep the cranberries moist as they bake while also giving them a little more sweetness. You can make a variation of this with regular sugar as detailed here from Feel Good Foodie.
- Cinnamon: I used a fresh cinnamon stick to lend more flavor to the cranberries. You can use ground cinnamon as well. Ginger or a pinch of all spice would also be lovely.
- Vanilla Extract: Helps to enhance the sweetness of this dish. If you don’t happen to have this on hand, it is totally okay to leave out.
- Orange Juice: Fresh squeezed or bottled, a splash of this at the end pairs really well with the cranberries and also adds some more sweetness to the dish.
How to Make This Recipe
This one is super simple. Add your cranberries to an 8 in x 8 in baking dish. Pour in your maple syrup, water and vanilla extract. Then stick your cinnamon stick in the middle of the dish.
Cover the baking dish with foil or an oven safe lid. Place the cranberries in the oven to bake for an hour.
Once they come out, remove the lid and with a spoon, mash your cranberries. Add in your orange juice and a pinch of salt and give a good mix to fully combine. The cranberry sauce will continue to thicken as it sits. Feel free to taste and adjust based on your sweetness preference.
Tips for the Perfect Baked Cranberry Sauce
- Make sure to use a fresh cinnamon stick. Old spices don’t have the same taste as fresh spices as they start to degrade once opened. So check the date of your spices and replenish as needed.
- Cover your baking dish well. Use a lid if your baking dish comes with one or use foil to tightly cover the cranberries before placing in the oven. If you bake without covering, the cranberries will burn.
- Adjust the sweetness of the cranberry sauce after it bakes. Use this recipe as a base and add more orange juice or maple syrup as desired.
- To help mellow some of the bitterness, add a small pinch of salt and stir into your cranberry sauce well. Salt actually helps with reducing the sensation of bitterness notes on our taste receptors.
Frequently Asked Questions
Freshly made cranberry sauce is normally more bitter because fresh cranberries are really tart and bitter. This is why most canned or homemade versions will add a lot of sugar to remove that bitterness. So before tweaking anything, make the recipe as is. Do not bake the cranberries with the orange juice as this will add more bitterness. Once baked, add your juice and a pinch of kosher salt, then taste the sauce. Add additional maple syrup in small amounts until your sauce tastes the way you want it to.
Adding salt helps to reduce bitter flavors. It will also help to enhance the natural sweet flavors of the orange juice and maple syrup without having to over sweeten the cranberry sauce.
Cranberries on their own are very nutritious! Cranberries are very high in antioxidants in the form of plant polyphenols and can be helpful for preventing chronic disease. However, cranberries are often not eaten fresh as they are very bitter and tart in flavor. Since most prepared cranberry products are usually loaded with sugar, I wanted to share a few tips to help keep you in control of the amount of sugar you add. While maple syrup is still a sugar, we’ve reduced this level of sweetness by half compared to other recipes. The splash of orange juice, vanilla and the cinnamon also help to enhance the sweetness without having to add much more to the dish. Stirring the orange juice at the end also helps to add more antioxidants to this version of the recipe.
How to Serve
Cranberry sauce is generally served with a protein or mashed potatoes at many holiday tables. To keep it all vegan, I love to serve it with this Brown Sugar Glazed Tofu or my Lentil Vegetable Wellington.
Storing Leftovers
Place leftover cooled cranberry sauce in an airtight container and place in the refrigerator. When properly stored, homemade cranberry sauce will keep in the refrigerator for 10 to 14 days. To store for longer, place the cranberry sauce in the freezer for up to 3 months. When ready to enjoy, thaw or bring to room temperature to enjoy or warm through on the stove if desired.
I love making this cranberry sauce in advance of any holiday get together. It’s one less thing to make, and easy enough to prep since there’s very little hands on time. It keeps well, so making a few days in advance is really helpful!
More Vegan Thanksgiving Recipes to Try
- Vegan Cranberry Chili Meatballs
- Easy Vegan Lentil Loaf
- Cranberry Pecan Stuffing
- Moro de Guandules con Coco
- Chopped Kale Salad with Pan Seared Herb Tofu
- Orange Miso Roasted Vegetables
Fresh Baked Cranberry Sauce
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 60 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 5 minutes
- Yield: 8 servings 1x
- Category: Sides
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegan
Description
An easy, make ahead cranberry sauce that bakes itself in the oven. Lightly sweetened with maple syrup and orange juice, it’s the perfect Thanksgiving side.
Ingredients
- 1, 12 oz bag of cranberries, rinsed well
- 1/2 cup maple syrup
- 1/4 cup water
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 1/2 cup orange juice
- 1/8 tsp salt (about a pinch)
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350F. In an 8 in x 8 in baking dish, pour in your cranberries. Pour overtop your maple syrup, water and vanilla extract and give everything a quick toss.
- Place your cinnamon stick down into the center of the dish, then cover the baking dish with an oven safe lid or wrap with some foil.
- Now place your baking dish into then oven and bake for 60 minutes. Do not remove lid.
- After baking, allow to sit covered for a few minutes to cool. Remove the cinnamon stick and with the back of a large spoon, carefully mash your cranberries. Pour in your orange juice and add a pinch of salt and stir your cranberries really well until they have thickened.
- Add more maple syrup or orange juice as desired to adjust to your taste preference then serve.
Notes
Make sure to use a fresh cinnamon stick. Old spices don’t have the same taste as fresh spices as they start to degrade once opened. So check the date of your spices and replenish as needed.
Cover your baking dish well. Use a lid if your baking dish comes with one or use foil to tightly cover the cranberries before placing in the oven. If you bake without covering, the cranberries will burn.
Adjust the sweetness of the cranberry sauce after it bakes. Use this recipe as a base and add more orange juice or maple syrup as desired.
To help mellow some of the bitterness, add a small pinch of salt and stir into your cranberry sauce well. Salt actually helps with reducing the sensation of bitterness notes on our taste receptors.
If you tried this recipe or any other recipe on the blog, then let me know what you thought in the comments below! And if you loved it, don’t forget to rate it too. Feel free to follow on Instagram, Pinterest, and TikTok for the latest nutrition tips and recipe videos.
★ Catherine
This post contains affiliate links which means I will make a small commission if you purchase from those links. I only recommend and share products that I know, trust and personally use myself!
Made this for Thanksgiving and LOVED it. Making it a second time to have as topping for oatmeal and anything else I can think of. Thanks for a simple winner!
That is the best thing to hear! Thank you Cammy and love that you made extra for oatmeal. That’s exactly what I did too!
This was so easy and yummy! I will keep this one on rotation.
So glad to hear that Catherine! It’s such a fav around here. Thank you so much for making it!