This Paleo Cranberry Sauce is sweetened with maple syrup to keep it refined sugar free. Orange zest and warm spices give this cranberry sauce incredible flavor, and it’s done in 15 minutes.
Are you a cranberry sauce fan on Thanksgiving? Cranberry sauce fans tend to be a pretty decisive group, and in my house at least, it’s always the same people scooping cranberry sauce onto their plates year after year.
Those who like cranberry sauce on their Thanksgiving plates also tend to be divided within themselves, favoring either fresh, chunky cranberry sauce, or the ridged stuff from the can. Which camp do you fall into? Personally, I’m all about the fresh stuff. I like my cranberry sauce tart, lightly sweetened, chunky, and full of flavor.
I don’t go all in on the cranberry sauce on Thanksgiving, though. I usually just take a little bit, and use it here and there to accent some bites. It’s not my favorite part of the meal, but it’s so quick and easy to make that I always try to take 15 minutes to whip a quick batch together for our table, especially being in the “fresh cranberry sauce all the way” camp. I don’t want our table to end up with the canned stuff on it. There’s something a little too odd to me about cranberry sauce in a can shape. I just can’t get down with it, especially when it’s so easy to make it yourself.
Can shape aside, you can also add so much more flavor to cranberry sauce that you make at home than comes packed inside those cans, and you can control all the sugar content. Like a sweeter cranberry sauce? Add a bit more maple syrup. Like it more tart? Scale it down. Want more cinnamon? Give it as a taste and adjust as necessary.
When you’re making cranberry sauce in your kitchen, it’s all in your control and you can make it just how you like it. This year’s version is my kitchen is definitely one of my favorites. In the past, I’ve used granulated or brown sugar, but this year I decided to make this cranberry sauce refined sugar free by sweetening with maple syrup.
I used just a 1/4 cup of maple syrup, but I found the cranberry sauce to be plenty sweet for my tastes – though I do prefer a more tart cranberry sauce. You can always add in more maple as necessary. Orange zest and juice help brighten up the recipe, but the spices are what really shine. I love fall spices so much, and the warmth they give this recipe is incredible! If you like the spices to be a bit more mild, start with using half the recommended amounts and scale up as desired.
This paleo cranberry sauce recipe will look beautiful on your Thanksgiving table! Be sure to snatch up the leftovers too, because I have some delicious recipes coming at you to use your leftover cranberry sauce. Enjoy!
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Paleo Cranberry Sauce
Save Print Prep time 5 mins Cook time 20 mins Total time 25 mins Author: Rachel Conners Serves: 1½ cups Ingredients - 12 oz. fresh cranberries
- Zest of 1 orange
- ¼ cup orange juice
- ½ cup maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon allspice
- Empty cranberries into a saucepan. Add maple syrup, orange juice, orange zest, and spices to the pan and cook over low heat, stirring occasionally until the cranberries are soft, about 10 minutes. Increase the heat to medium and cook until the cranberries burst, about 5 more minutes. If you like your cranberry sauce very chunky, remove from heat now. If you like a smoother sauce, cook down over medium heat for another 5 minutes. Transfer to a bowl and let cool completely before serving.
- Can be stored in the refrigerator for 1 week.
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