Spiced Orange Cranberry Sauce with Juniper.
I'm a real lover of cranberry sauce. Once, it was just a jar of something sweet and fruity, to slather on the turkey once a year. My love for the stuff has increased over the years and now I can't contemplate a roast chicken Sunday lunch without my favourite condiment.
Imagine my horror when I couldn't find it in France! I spent a fortune buying cranberry bushes, but managed to kill them all. Luckily, fresh cranberries are now often available in the UK and France, so here is my version with Spiced Orange Cranberry Sauce with Juniper.
Cranberry sauce has to be one of the easiest things to make, so there is really no excuse not to make it at this time of year. It's simply a matter of throwing everything in a saucepan and simmering for about 20 minutes. That's it. Job done.
I have deliberately used a lot less sugar in this recipe and instead added a lot of Christmas flavours.
I put a cinnamon stick, cloves, and juniper berries in a piece of muslin and tied with string as a bouquet garni. The juniper berries are the flavouring used in gin so they give a subtle flavour to the sauce. Put the cranberries in a saucepan with sugar, finely sliced orange rind, (zest if you prefer), orange juice and the bouquet garni. Bring the whole lot to the boil and simmer for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Leave to cool.
The good thing about this Spiced Orange Cranberry Sauce with Juniper is that it will go with many meals over the Christmas period. The orange flavours go particularly well with duck, goose and game birds and it is perfect with gammon too.
If you are looking for a tangy and festive cranberry sauce then this sauce is perfect.
Despite my disaster at cranberries, redcurrants seem to grow like weeds. If you are looking for a recipe try my Redcurrant Jelly It was my first ever recipe on the blog. I think you can tell - Ha!
Don't forget to Pin the Spiced Orange Cranberry Sauce with Juniper for later.
Spiced Orange Cranberry Sauce with Juniper
Ingredients
- 300 g fresh cranberries
- 1 orange
- 50 g sugar
- 1/2 cinnamon stick
- 3 cloves
- 3 juniper berries
- 2 tbsp ruby port optional
- orange juice to make up to 100ml
Instructions
- Remove the peel from the orange, leaving the pith. Cut into fine slices. Alternatively zest the orange peel. Juice the orange
- Lightly squeeze the juniper berries and wrap in muslin with the cinnamon and cloves.
- Make the orange juice up to 100ml with fresh orange juice.
- Put all of the ingredients into a pan, heat gently, stirring until the sugar has dissolved. Let simmer for 20 minutes then remove the bouquet garni and transfer to a serving dish.
Thanks Megala. Yes, the kitchen always smells amazing when I make this!
Love this bright red sauce! I could very well imagine the aroma of delicious cranberry sauce.
Thanks Beth. I use juniper in lots of dishes and it will go really well with your game too!
Thanks. It's really good Caroline.
Thanks Claudia!
Where I live I don't have access to cranberries, but I'll definitely save this recipe for when I'll find some 😉
Love the idea of adding Juniper to cranberry sauce, that would add a really nice subtle flavour.
Ooohhh! I love the sound of this cranberry sauce! I have recently found juniper and really enjoy it. I can't wait to try it!
Thanks Amanda.
Love the addition of juniper. Yum!!
Thanks Mary. I love simple recipes packed full of flavour!
Thanks Karen. I will eat it with any poultry - maybe draw the line at pigeon! We are very chilled. Hope you are having a good one too!
Your recipe sounds great and you are right, it would be terrific with chicken. I hope you are having a wonderful Christmas Day.
Gorgeous pictures Amanda! A great simple recipe, too – looks delicious! I have to try this! Looks amazing! Perfect. This is a great idea. Thank you for sharing this great recipe.
Thanks! It really does smell amazing!
Thanks Tayler. Now I'm thinking about a ginger twist for next time!
Thanks Silvia. I was the same in France when I found them!
Thanks Danielle!
This sounds so delicious and easy to make. Perfect for xmas dinner!
Last year was the first time I've seen fresh cranberries where I live (Spain) and I got pretty excited. I really wanted to make cranberry sauce. Next time I'll add orange zest as well. Yours looks delicious!
I love a good cranberry sauce with a kick! Usually I spice things up with ginger but juniper sounds like an interesting twist!
I bet this smells amazing too! Such a festive dish to add to the dinner table!
Thanks Jack! Merry Christmas to you!
Looks and sounds delicious ❤