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Jessica’s Cranberry Orange Sauce

Posted on by Blue Pacific Flavors

Thanksgiving is here! What better time to connect with FLAVOR than through our favorite family recipes? This family-approved recipe for Cranberry Orange Sauce is shared by our Sensory & Consumer Insights Manager, Jessica Morton.

Jessica started making this simple sauce when she was a teenager.  “I can hardly remember a Thanksgiving or Christmas when I haven’t made my Cranberry Orange Sauce – or some version of it,” Jessica shares.  “A lot of people treat cranberry sauce as a ‘garnish’ for the turkey and stuffing, pretty on the plate but they don’t really enjoy eating it.  I think it’s one of the best holiday flavors there is!”

“A lot of people treat cranberry sauce as a ‘garnish’ for the turkey and stuffing; pretty on the plate but they don’t really enjoy eating it.  I think it’s one of the best holiday flavors there is!”

Jessica Morton

Cranberry is a fruit featured on many holiday tables, and with good reason. Its brilliant ruby hue and bright berry flavor make it the perfect centerpiece to festive celebrations. Cranberry sauces, jellies, and relishes give the palate a juicy “re-set,” providing a refreshingly tart contrast to the proteins, fats, and salts that make up a traditional Thanksgiving meal.  In other words, cranberry sauce is the sorbet for your Thanksgiving plate!

Jessica’s recipe uses fresh fruit for an extra boost of cranberry flavor.  Orange juice and zest add a tangy sweetness and bright citrus flavor that blends perfectly with the red wine and seedy raspberry notes of cranberries.  The citric acid naturally found in oranges also helps the cranberries retain their jewel-toned color throughout cooking.  A cup of sugar and a dash of cinnamon bring sweetness and complexity to the fruit.  “It’s amazing how something so simple to prepare can be so beautiful – and delicious!” Jessica says.

Thank you Jessica for sharing your holiday recipe with us!  Happy Thanksgiving and best wishes to all for a safe, healthy, joyous, and FLAVOR FULL holiday season.

Picking Cranberries By Hand
Wasal Wpi Fall2018 Agriculture Cranberries Harvest Surface
1108 Cranberry Harvest09
Cranberries fall into a truck after the vines have been removed and they have been cleaned. (Jesse Costa/WBUR)
Traditionally, cranberry harvesting was all done by had – a back (and knee!) breaking job. Today the majority of cranberries are harvested mechanically by scooping buoyant berries from the surface of their flooded bogs, which is more efficient and requires much less manual labor.

Jessica’s Cranberry Orange Sauce

  • 3 cups whole fresh cranberries, rinsed and drained
  • 1 cup fresh orange juice
  • 1 cup sugar
  • Zest from 1 large orange (about ¼ tsp), finely chopped
  • ¼ tsp cinnamon

In a medium saucepan, combine the cranberries, orange juice, sugar, orange zest, and cinnamon.  Bring mixture to a boil over medium heat.  Reduce heat and boil gently for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Cranberries will pop as the mixture cooks: this is totally normal, and fun!  The sauce should thicken slightly as the berries release their pectin and some of the water evaporates from the pot. 

Once the sauce is fully cooked, pour it into a container and let cool.  Refrigerate for 4 hours or until sauce is chilled through and thickened.  Serve cold as an accompaniment to roast turkey, pork tenderloin, or ham.

Yield: 2 cups cranberry sauce

Cranberry Sauce 9

Blue Pacific Flavors LOVES cranberry! We offer organic cranberry flavor and natural cranberry flavor, along with natural cranberry ingredient solutions for health and wellness. Contact us today to request a sample of some of of best cranberry flavors and products!

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