This old-fashioned cranberry sauce recipe is the perfect side dish for a classic Thanksgiving dinner! It’s super easy to make, only takes 15 minutes, and you can make it days ahead for easy Thanksgiving and Christmas meal prep!
I remember my mom teaching me to make this sauce on Christmas or Thanksgiving morning. She loved to hear the cranberries “popping” as they cooked. The smell filled the kitchen and it felt so festive!
2 Simple Ingredients
This is the simplest recipe you’ll ever make with only 2 basic ingredients. Most recipes call for granulated sugar instead of maple syrup, but I love the flavor that the maple imparts to the sauce, and I feel better about the sugar because it’s more natural.
You will use less water in this recipe because the maple syrup replaces some of that moisture!
- 1 cup of maple syrup
- 3 cups of fresh or frozen whole cranberries!
How To Make Cranberry Sauce
- In a medium saucepan, bring maple syrup to a boil.
- Add cranberries and bring them back up to a boil.
- Reduce the heat to a gentle simmer for about 10 minutes stirring occasionally.
- Remove from heat.
- If you want crushed cranberry sauce, use a potato masher or emersion blender to mash cranberries.
- Pour the sauce into a serving dish and cover with plastic wrap.
- Cool to room temperature, and refrigerate till serving… Enjoy!
HOW TO SERVE
We serve this classic thanksgiving sauce in a pretty glass bowl on the Thanksgiving Buffet! It’s the perfect complement to classic roast turkey, or traditional roast beef, savory turkey stuffing, soft and buttery homemade sourdough rolls, sweet candied yams, and green bean casserole!
Place leftovers in an air-tight container and keep them in the refrigerator for 1 week, or freeze for later use! Leftovers are wonderful to spread on a turkey sandwich the next day too!
If you are making this for Thanksgiving, print your free Thanksgiving Coloring Pages to keep everyone busy while you’re cooking!
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Old Fashioned Cranberry Sauce
This old-fashioned cranberry sauce recipe is the perfect side dish for a classic Thanksgiving dinner! It's super easy to make, only takes 15 minutes, and you can make it days ahead for easy Thanksgiving meal prep!
Ingredients
- 2 cups maple syrup
- 3 cups fresh or frozen cranberries
Instructions
- In a medium saucepan, bring maple syrup to a boil.
- Add cranberries and bring them back up to a boil.
- Reduce the heat to a gentle simmer for about 10 minutes stirring occasionally.
- Remove from heat.
- If you want crushed cranberry sauce, use a potato masher or emersion blender to mash cranberries.
- Pour the sauce into a serving dish and cover with plastic wrap.
- Cool to room temperature, and refrigerate till serving... Enjoy!
Notes
We serve this classic thanksgiving sauce in a pretty glass bowl on the Thanksgiving Buffet! It's the perfect complement to classic roast turkey, savory turkey stuffing, sweet candied yams, and green bean casserole!
Place leftovers in an air-tight container and keep them in the refrigerator for 1 week, or freeze for later use! Leftovers are wonderful to spread on a turkey sandwich the next day too!
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