Dried Cherry & Orange Cranberry Sauce Recipe - Ready in 20 Minutes (2024)

FAQs

Can you substitute dried cranberries for dried cherries? ›

Both can be used interchangeably in recipes. Cranberries Plain or flavored, dried cranberries are usually sweetened because they're too tart otherwise. They can be substituted for dried cherries in recipes.

You can make cranberry-orange sauce ahead and take a little pressure off the biggest cooking day of the year! Homemade orange-cranberry sauce will keep well covered and refrigerated for 10-14 days.

While there are some editors who prefer homemade cranberry sauce, the canned variety also has quite a following. "There's something so beautifully perfect about the texture of canned cranberry sauce, and none of those homemade mess will ever compete," says Senior Digital Food Editor Kimberly Holland.

If your cranberry sauce is too thick, it's most likely overcooked. When you cook cranberries (or any berries), they burst, releasing pectin—a natural thickener. The key to a perfect consistency is to allow some but not all of the cranberries to split open—something you'll achieve with less time on the stove.

Rehydrate the fruits: Dried fruits can be quite hard and dry, so it's often a good idea to rehydrate them before adding them to your baked goods. To do this, simply soak the dried fruits in warm water or fruit juice for 15-20 minutes until they are plump and tender.

The micronutrients in dried fruit have been linked to a few different health benefits. This means that these sweet treats aren't just empty calories. Vitamins C and A have been shown to be beneficial in preventing and slowing the progression of cataracts.

Jelling. Homemade cranberry sauce is meant to thicken, or “jell,” while cooking. If it stays soupy, that could mean a couple of things. One possibility is that you may not have used enough sugar: Sugar helps the sauce firm up, so be sure to use the full amount called for in a recipe.

The major variation you're likely to come across is "whole berry" versus "jellied." The only difference between them is that the jellied sauce is cooked until the berries have completely broken down. They both slide out of the can as a wobbly red cylinder.

Should homemade cranberry sauce be served cold? You'll want to cool your homemade cranberry sauce to room temperature first, as hot liquids can crack pretty serving dishes! After that, chilling it will not only help the cranberry sauce thicken and gel, but it preserves it as well.

"Instead, start by stirring in one tablespoon maple syrup and one teaspoon of a sweet drink like apple juice, orange juice, or fruity white or red wine. Add more to taste. Sprinkle with a pinch of salt (in small amounts, it intensifies sweetness)."

Why do you open cranberry sauce upside down? ›

But why? Ocean Spray says this is to get the cranberry sauce out in one intact piece. “The rounded part of the can that looks like the bottom has an air bubble in it,” Ocean Spray's representative explains. The bubble is there so you can “break the seal the sauce makes with the can.”

Try A Softer Sweetener

If you don't have maple syrup (pancake syrup WILL NOT do, y'all), try honey or a more neutral sweetener like agave syrup, brown rice syrup, or even simple syrup. All of these syrupy ingredients are a perfect quick fix for bitter cranberry sauce.

Plums, apricots and nectarines all make great replacements for cherries in both sweet and savory dishes. Cherry liqueur or extract can be used to add cherry flavor to a dish, but they both have their own strengths and weaknesses. Cranberries add both color and flavor to recipes, while beetroot adds a bolder flavor.

Cranberries are perfect for making cranberry sauce and baking, whether fresh, frozen, or dried. This juicy red fruit is perfect to add a natural sweetness to a variety of breads, quick breads, scones, and muffins or any recipes.

Both cherries and cranberry are high in dietary fiber.

Cranberry has 71% more dietary fiber than cherry - cherry has 2.1g of dietary fiber per 100 grams and cranberry has 3.6g of dietary fiber.

Alternatively you could use dried cherries or even dried cranberries as an alternative or omit the cherries completely and replace them with extra nuts.