Maple Bourbon Cranberry Sauce

Cranberries – Use a standard 12oz bag of fresh cranberries here. Rinse and pick through them as usual. I don’t recommend frozen cranberries, but if that’s all you have, use straight from frozen.

Maple – Use real maple syrup and not “pancake” syrup as it is just artificially flavored sugar water.

Bourbon – You can use any preferred bourbon or whiskey in this recipe. As always, use something you would be willing to drink and not just the cheapest liquor you can find. If you don’t typically keep bourbon or whiskey on-hand, you can buy a small airplane or sampler bottle for the recipe.

Orange – One large orange should be enough for the ¼ cup or juice and zest you will need here. If you’re not a fan of orange in cranberry sauce, simply replace the orange juice with water.

Cinnamon – I like to use 1 cinnamon stick in the sauce while it is cooking. If you don’t have sticks, you can replace it with ⅛ to ¼ teaspoon of ground cinnamon.

Vanilla – Just a bit of vanilla extract helps to balance all the flavors in the cranberry sauce. I used homemade bourbon vanilla extract, but if you don’t have that or can’t find some at the store, just use regular vanilla extract instead.

Salt – A pinch of salt, like vanilla extract, helps to balance the flavors and sweetness in the sauce.

Set a medium-sized saucepan on the stove over medium-high heat and add in the maple syrup, orange juice, and bourbon. Stir occasionally as it comes to a simmer.

Once strongly simmering and just shy of boiling, pour in the cranberries, reserving about ½ cup of them, and lower the heat to a gentle simmer. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the cranberries start to pop open, about 4-5 minutes.

When the cranberries start to pop open, add the cinnamon stick, orange zest, vanilla extract, and salt. Stir to combine and continue cooking at a gentle simmer.

As the cranberries continue to cook, they will break apart and cook down. Continue to stir occasionally, and at this point you can smash some of the cranberries against the sides of the saucepan. Depending on the cranberries, the entire process after adding the cranberries should take around 15 minutes. Add the reserved cranberries and cook for another minute or two, then remove from the heat.

The added cranberries will cook and soften in the hot sauce, and the sauce will continue to thicken as it cools. Garnish with the remaining orange zest if desired. If serving right away, let the sauce cool for at least 10-20 minutes to a warm heat. Otherwise, allow the sauce to cool completely to room temperature before storing for later use.

❄️ How to Store Cranberry Sauce

Once cooled completely, you can store maple bourbon cranberry sauce in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1-2 weeks. Although you can safely store it for that long, I recommend using it within the first week or so for the best flavor.

While this sauce can be made quickly and easily the day you plan on using it, I recommend making it at least a day ahead of time. The flavors meld and improve after a day or two of chilling.

Cranberry sauce can be served warm, room temperature, or even cold. Everyone has their own preference. Remove it from the refrigerator early enough to be cool or near room temperature if desired. If you prefer it warm, remove it from the refrigerator and place in a saucepan. Heat gently over medium-low heat until warmed throughout.