Go Back

Joanna Gaines Holiday Cranberry Sauce

Joanna Gaines holiday cranberry sauce is a quick stovetop simmer that turns fresh cranberries into a chunky, spoonable sauce. Simmer until berries burst and thicken, then chill for clean sliceable-style set and stir in crunchy pecans right before serving.
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Total Time 20 minutes
Servings: 8 servings
Course: Side Dish
Cuisine: American
Calories: 210
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

Cranberry sauce
  • 12 oz fresh cranberries
  • 0.5 cup sugar
  • 0.5 cup brown sugar, packed
  • 1 cup orange juice
  • 1 tsp orange zest
  • 0.5 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 0.25 tsp ground ginger
  • 0.05 salt pinch
  • 0.5 cup pecans, toasted and chopped

Equipment

  • 1 Dutch oven

Method
 

Simmer the cranberry base
  1. Combine sugar, brown sugar, orange juice, ground cinnamon, ground ginger, and salt in a saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat (steady bubbles across the surface).
  2. Add fresh cranberries to the boiling mixture. Simmer for 10-12 minutes until the berries burst and the sauce thickens (you should see thickened syrup coating the spoon).
Finish and chill
  1. Remove the saucepan from heat and stir in orange zest. Stop cooking immediately so the zest stays bright (mixture should look glossy and fragrant).
  2. Cool completely, then chill until serving. Cover and refrigerate until cold and set, about 1 hour.
Serve with crunch
  1. Stir toasted pecans into the chilled cranberry sauce just before serving. Keep the pecans crunchy by adding them right before serving.

Notes

Pro tip: For the chunkiest texture, keep the simmer at a gentle boil so the cranberries burst but don’t break down into a smooth puree. Refrigerate in a sealed container up to 4-5 days; freeze up to 1 month (stir in fresh-toasted pecans after thawing for best crunch). For a lower-sugar option, replace the sugars with a 1:1 granulated sugar substitute designed for cooking, and adjust to taste.