This Apple Cranberry Sauce is a simple, delicious homemade cranberry sauce recipe that is the perfect side dish for any Holiday meal! We love serving at our Thanksgiving dinner every year!
The BEST Apple Cranberry Sauce
A classic cranberry sauce has always been one of the staples of a holiday dinner but sometimes the staples need a new little spin! This apple cranberry sauce has that great cranberry flavor with a little apple twist. It is so simple to make and you can really customize it to your desired thickness and sweetness! It’s the perfect side dish to your Thanksgiving Turkey, Stuffing and Green Bean Casserole!
Need another Thanksgiving side dish? Check out our amazing list of 45+ Thanksgiving Side Dishes!
What You Will Need
- cranberries – we love using fresh cranberries but you could use frozen cranberries too!
- apple cider – feel free to sub with apple juice if you have some on hand.
- coconut sugar – this is where you can customize the sweetness of your sauce – add small amounts at a time to your desired taste.
- ground cinnamon – just a little for some added cozy flavor!
- lemon juice – this really helps bring out all of the great flavors in this dish.
- balsamic vinegar – a little bit for even more great flavor.
- kosher salt – just a pinch!
- apple – we prefer using a sweeter, red apple in this dish to offset some of the tartness of the cranberries but you can use any of your favorite apples.
How To Make Apple Cranberry Sauce
Combine all of the ingredients, except the apple, in a small saucepan. Bring it to a boil on medium high heat and then simmer for 15 minutes.
How Do You Get The Bitterness Out Of Cranberry Sauce
Simply adjust the bitterness in this easy cranberry sauce by adding a bit more coconut sugar or switching to apple juice instead of apple cider. Apple juice would be a bit sweeter.
After it simmers for 15 minutes, you can add the chopped apples and simmer for another 15-20 minutes depending on how you like the consistency.
How To Adjust The Consistency – Thicker vs. Thinner
You can easily customize the thickness of your amazing cranberry sauce by letting it simmer for a longer time to reach a thicker consistency or only let it simmer for a little bit if you prefer a thinner sauce. Another way to thin it out a bit would be to add a little more apple cider at the end until it is just the way you want it!
Remove from the heat and let it cool before serving.
Tips For Making Ahead Of Time & Storing
There is no better holiday side dish than one that can be made ahead of time! This is perfect for that. You can easily make this the night before your holiday meal and store it in the fridge. It will last for 10-14 days in the refrigerator. You can also freeze this simple cranberry sauce if you want to keep it for longer! Simply place in a freezer-safe container and freeze for up to 3 months and thaw by placing it in the fridge and serve it the next day.
Best Ways To Serve Apple Cranberry Sauce
This quick and easy cranberry sauce is a must on the Thanksgiving table! The beautiful red color also makes it great for Christmas dinner. Either way, any holiday meal will be better with this sweet and slightly tart side dish. We also love pairing it with turkey leftovers to make Turkey Cranberry Wraps.
Love cranberry sauce – also try our Bourbon Cranberry Sauce!
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Other Recipes You Might Like
Turkey Cranberry Wrap
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Easy Holiday Punch
Apple Cranberry Sauce Recipe
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 10 servings 1x
- Category: Side Dish
- Method: Stove Top
- Cuisine: American
Description
Apple Cranberry Sauce – a simple, delicious apple cranberry sauce recipe that is the perfect side dish for any Holiday meal! So easy!
Ingredients
- 10–12 oz raw cranberries (frozen works too)
- 1 cup apple cider
- 1/4 cup coconut sugar*
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 2 teaspoons lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
- pinch of salt
- 1 cup apple, diced
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients except apple in a small/medium saucepan; Stir to combine.
- Bring to boil and then immediately reduce to simmer 15 minutes, uncovered. Add apples and continue to simmer for an additional 15-20 minutes.
- Remove from heat and let cool before serving.
Notes
- Consistency: If you like your cranberry sauce thicker simply let it simmer a little longer (just keep an eye on it so it doesn’t get TOO dry). If you like your cranberry sauce thinner either don’t let it simmer as long or add an additional splash or two of apple cider to thin it at at the end.
- Make ahead: This is the perfect dish to make ahead for a Thanksgiving dinner! Simply store in the fridge overnight in a covered container.
- Apple Cider: you could also use apple juice.
- *Coconut Sugar: feel free to taste and add more coconut sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time if you think it needs more sweetness to offset the tartness of the cranberries!
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1/4 cup
- Calories: 41
- Sugar: 7.8 g
- Sodium: 237.7 mg
- Fat: 0.1 g
- Carbohydrates: 10.5 g
- Protein: 0.2 g
- Cholesterol: 0 mg
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