Spicy Cranberry Sauce Recipe
Plus 20 Ways to Use Any Leftover Sauce!
This spicy cranberry sauce recipe is healthy, delicious, and ever so easy to make. I used two cups of fresh cranberries in this spicy cranberry sauce recipe, so it’s perfect if you’re cooking for one. And you can easily double or triple it too if you want to make more.
The only ingredients you need are fresh cranberries, a small orange, honey, cloves, star anise, and a cinnamon twig. For the spices, you will need a small gauze bag and a mortar and pestle.
Place the whole spices into the mortar (the bowl), and gently break them down using the pestle (the grinding tool). Put the spices into the small muslin bag and tie it tightly with a string. So you don’t have a muslin bag? Put the spices on some cheesecloth and tie a string around the cloth, making it into a ball.
READ MORE: Ravioli Lasagna Recipe for 1-2 People
I bought my muslin bags a while back and use them all the time for cooking, crafts, and gifting little gifts. You can buy them here.
Place the cranberries in a saucepan and cover them with water. Toss in the bag with the spices, and bring the contents to a rolling boil.
Let the mixture simmer for approximately 10 minutes (or until the little cranberry “pops” stop), and remove from the heat. Allow the spices and berries to steep until the contents have cooled down.
While waiting for the cranberries to cool down, slice the orange into several sections. Put the orange pieces into a small blender or food processer. Remove the spice bag from the saucepan, and strain the water from the cranberries. (I save the cranberry water for cocktails or add a sprig of mint and enjoy, unsweetened or add sugar). Add the cranberries and honey, then blend or pulse until the mixture is the consistency you enjoy most.
READ MORE: Hot Honey Recipe is Spicy Sweet!
Pour the contents into a small bowl and garnish with a slice of orange or some orange zest. Then top the sauce with a sprig of mint or rosemary and serve!
And if you happen to have any leftovers, I’ve listed 20 ways to use them in the chart below.
Spicy Cranberry Sauce Recipe
Spicy, sweet and tangy cranberry sauce will tantalize your taste buds throughout the Holidays and beyond!
Ingredients
- 2 cups of fresh cranberries
- 1 cinnamon stick (3" - 4")
- 8-10 small cloves
- 1 whole star anise
- 1 small whole orange with peel
- 2 tablespoons of honey
Instructions
- Place the cinnamon stick, cloves, and star anise into a mortar and use the pestle to break the spices into small pieces (approximately 1/8" - 1/4").
- Pour the broken spices into the muslin or cloth bag, and tie a string around the top.
- Put the cranberries to a small saucepan and cover with water.
- Add the spice bag, and bring the cranberry mixture to a rolling boil.
- Allow the mixture to simmer for approximately 10 minutes, then remove from the heat.
- Let the spices and boiled cranberries cool (approximately 15-20 minutes), then add to the blender or food processor.
- Slice the orange into small sections, and put in the pieces into the blender or food processor.
- Add the honey, then blend or pulse until the mixture is the consistency you like best.
- Spoon into a serving bowl, garnish with an orange slice or some mint, and serve.
Notes
If you prefer a less orangey dish, peel the orange before blending and zest some of the orange peel into the mixture. You can also adjust the sweetness by adding more or less honey. If you like a little more spice, stir in a couple shakes of cinnamon powder.
If you make this recipe, please leave a comment below and let me know how it turns out for you. And you can also share a photo of your dish on my Instagram account with the hashtag #thrivingwithless – Bon Appetit!
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This looks and sounds delicious and I am always looking for ways to use leftover cranberry sauce. Laura
Thank you, Laura! If you find more ideas, please let me know — I have a huge bag of cranberries in the freezer and am on the hunt to double this list!!
Cheers,
JJ
Well, first of all, thank you for taking time to stop by Marmelade Gypsy before the holidays. As you probably have experienced, holidays can get a little crazy and I’m late in returning “the call,” but delighted to “meet you” here in the ether-world! The sauce looks absolutely delicious. I adore cranberries and they don’t seem to stick around long, so I will most certainly be buying more before they disappear and give this one a try! Happy New Year! ~ jenaie from Marmelade Gypsy
Happy New Year to you too, Jenaie!! Enjoy the cranberries and I absolutely love the name of your blog!
[…] It won’t be long before we are starting to talk about turkey dinner. JJ at Thriving with Less has the best idea for spicing up your cranberry sauce. […]