Cranberry apple sauce is the perfect combination of tart fresh cranberries, juicy apples, bright oranges, and sweet honey. If you like sweet and tart flavors, this is the best cranberry sauce variation for you. This homemade cranberry sauce recipe is perfect for Thanksgiving and Christmas. It has a splash of orange juice and you control the flavors with more or less honey added. You will love this cranberry apple sauce that it will be something you crave all year round.
I will admit I am not a huge cranberry sauce fan and that is why I decided I needed to learn how to make this homemade. I know that Ocean Spray canned jelly or whole cranberry sauce may be what your family buys but try this homemade recipe for something a whole lot better. The beauty of this combination is that it is not as tart as traditional cranberry sauces - thank you, apples - thank you, honey! With just a few ingredients, the perfect homemade cranberry apple sauce is ready in less than 30 minutes.
There is no long boil method when you use an Instant Pot or any pressure cooker. I am a big fan of my Instant Pot and was not sure I would be at first when I got it. But it is recipes like this that really save me a lot of time that make it a constant winner in my household. If you do not have a pressure cooker, you can still make this cranberry apple sauce - but I highly recommend purchasing one and keeping your eyes out for deals that may happen around the holidays.
Why Make Homemade Cranberry Apple Sauce
Why settle for canned cranberry sauce or jelly when you can have homemade that is so easy and economical? Here are all the reasons you should make this homemade versus buying the can:
- You control the ingredients - buy organic or local ingredients if available
- You control the sweetness - add less or more honey to get it to your liking
- It is so easy
- A great recipe to get your kids involved helping out with
- You can make large or small batches
- Pride in something homemade
- It makes the house smell amazing
- It doesn't come out in the shape of a can - though my brother and I still think it is funny to serve canned solid food standing upright - "Tada, presenting the tower of cranberry jelly!"
What is Cranberry Sauce Used For?
There are so many uses for cranberry or cranberry apple sauce. It is not just for Thanksgiving dinner and leftover turkey sandwiches anymore. It is found in all sorts of recipes and served any time of day and with any meal. Here are some great ideas on how to use your cranberry apple sauce.
- Thanksgiving dinner - obviously
- Condiment for many types of meat such as chicken, turkey, pork tenderloin, venison, etc
- Use in desserts, like cranberry cream cheese bars
- As an appetizer, smothered over baked brie and crackers
- For breakfast, bake into muffins or spread on scones
- For lunch, blend with oil and vinegar to make a salad dressing
- Snack time, combine with cream cheese for a dip or spread https://theshortordercook.com/holiday-cranberry-cheese-spread/
- Any time, top fresh or frozen greek yogurt
How to Make Homemade Cranberry Apple Sauce
This recipe needs only 4 ingredients:
- fresh cranberries
- an orange
- apples
- honey, by taste
Ingredients for Instant Pot Cranberry Apple Sauce
Place the fresh cranberries in a colander and rinse. Pick through them to ensure they are all good. Core the apples and dice into large chunks. I leave the skins on as there are a lot of vitamins in the skins and we like our cranberry sauce a bit chunky. If you like yours smooth you can still leave the skins on as the final step in this is using an immersion blender to blend; therefore, you can make this as smooth or chunky as you like.
Juice the orange and put it into a measuring cup. Top off the orange juice with water to fill the measuring cup to equal ¾ cup of total liquid. Do not worry that you need a full 1 cup for this - the apples and cranberries will begin to release their own juices so this is enough liquid to keep the pot from burning.
In the insert of your Instant Pot or pressure cooker, add the cranberries, apple chunks, and the orange juice liquid. Just look at those bright colors. You know something good is going to come from these fresh and wholesome ingredients.
Ingredients in the pressure cooker insert
Place the lid on the Instant Pot and ensure it is set to seal. Lock in place and select MANUAL and set the timer to 8 minutes. It should take less than 10 minutes to come to pressure. After the 8 minutes cook time has completed, let the Instant Pot naturally release for 10 minutes. Then push the lid valve to release the remaining pressure if there is any - be careful the steam will be hot. Once the lid releases, open and you should see a very chunky fruit mixture and your house will smell amazing!
Cranberry Apple Sauce ready to blend
To blend, I remove about ½ cup of the cranberries as is - nice and chunky. I then use my immersion blender inside the insert to blend the remaining of the cranberry apple mixture until smooth. I just love my immersion blender for soups and apple sauce. If you do not have one, I highly recommend one since it is small, inexpensive, and really saves time and clean up from using a regular blender. Once at my desired thickness, I add the chunky cranberries back in and stir.
Next measure ½ C of honey, add to the cranberry apple sauce and stir. Taste to see if it is your desired tart or sweetness. Add ¼ C more at a time until your desired taste. The sweetness of the apples you use and how tart the cranberries are will determine how much or how little honey you need. I ended up needing ¾ C since our homegrown apples are pretty tart. Pour into an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 30 days.
Pour into jars or other sealable containers
PIN FOR SAFEKEEPING & SHARING!
IP Cranberry Apple Sauce PIN
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Instant Pot (pressure cooker) Cranberry Apple Sauce
Equipment
- pressure cooker
Ingredients
- 12 oz fresh cranberries
- 2 medium apples cored & chopped
- 1 orange juiced
- ½ - 1 C honey
Instructions
- Rinse cranberries in a colander and pick through them to ensure they are all good. (they should be firm and red)
- Core and cut the apples into large chunks.
- Juice the orange and pour it into a measuring cup. Top the juice off with water to make for ¾ cup of total liquid.
- Into the insert of the Instant Pot, add the cranberries, apples, and the orange liquid.
- Ensure the seal is in place and lock the lid on the Instant Pot. Make sure the valve is set to seal and select Manual. Set the timer to 8 minutes.
- It should take less than 10 minutes to come to pressure. When the 8 cooking minutes have completed, let the pressure cooker come down naturally for 10 minutes.
- Then release any remaining pressure by moving the lid valve to open – be careful as the steam will be hot. Once all the pressure is released, open the lid. CAUTION STEAM WILL BE HOT!
- If you want the sauce to be a bit chunky, remove some cranberries from the insert and reserve to the side. Using an immersion blender, blend the cranberry apple mixture until it is your desired smoothness. Add any cranberry chunks back in if you reserved some to the side.
- Next, add ½ C honey to the mixture and taste test. Add more honey if too tart to your liking.
- Store in airtight containers and keep in the refrigerator for up to 30 days.
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Tamara | The Gutz Life says
This looks and sounds delicious. I like the idea of serving it over brie. It will be perfect for a festive Christmas appetizer.
Robin says
Ooooh I'm going to definitely give this a try! Thanks so much for sharing your talent with us at the Creative Muster. Looking forward to seeing what you’ll be sharing next week. Pinning!
Robin😊
Angela says
Great, thank you for pinning and dropping a comment.
Michelle says
This is one of my favorite things to make and I just got an instant pot so I can’t wait to make it in that. I am allergic to oranges so I use pineapple and that has become a huge hit with my family. A different twist to the normal cranberry sauce.
Angela says
The pineapple juice addition sounds amazing - thanks for sharing.
Lisa says
We have never tried anything with cranberry, we will definitely give this a try. Thank you for sharing.
Karen says
Ohhh, this makes my mouth water. It looks delicious!
Matt Epley says
My wife just bought a new Instant Pot last year. This sounds so amazing that I might finally give it a whirl for myself.
Angela says
Great Matt. I cannot wait to hear what you think and how you like the IP!
Dena says
I agree with you. Not a huge cranberry fan either but I do like honey and apples! This might be the recipe for me! I'll try it out! Thanks for the share! 😊
Angela says
Yes the apples really mellow it out and if the cranberries are still too tart for you, the honey helps.
jen says
OHHHH I have always wanted to make this! Perhaps this is the year...
Angela says
Yes 2019 is the year!
Erika says
This looks delicious and perfect to accompany Thanksgiving dinner.
Patrice says
I've never made cranberry applesauce in my instant pot before but maybe it's time I did! This looks so pretty too.
Jacqueline Debono says
I love cranberry sauce and not just with turkey! I serve it with lamb, pheasant and schnitzel! Love the idea of adding apples to it! On my to make list!
Angela says
Yes, it is so great with many types of meat other than turkey!
yasmin harper says
Can't wait to try this recipe out it looks delicious and so simple to make. It would be perfect for Christmas dinner!
Simone says
I love the fact that this is made with apples & honey, it sounds really delicious & perfect for the holidays!
Tamara J says
This is the perfect cranberry apple sauce recipe! Just in time for the holidays too! It looks and sounds so amazing, I can’t wait to try it out.
Sonila says
Apple cranberry sauce in instant pot sounds so perfect for Thanksgiving. Plus, IP should make this so much easier to prepare. Perfect!!!
Christen says
This cranberry sauce looks so perfect for Thanksgiving! And being able to make it in the instant pot is definitely a time saver. Thanks for this recipe!
Beth says
Great idea to combine the sweetness of apples with the tartness of the cranberries. I have a few apples in need of a recipe, and this is going to be the one, well in advance of Thanksgiving!
Angela Greven | Mean Green Chef says
The IP has revolutionized cooking, I know pressure cookers have been around since the 1600s but IP took it to another level. This looks delish and perfect for any holiday table spread!
Miz Helen says
Your awesome post has been featured on Full Plate Thursday,458. Thanks so much for sharing your talent with us and come back to see us real soon!
Miz Helen
Angela says
Thank you for featuring this - very exciting. Happy Thanksgiving!
Lathiya says
The cranberry sauce looks so shiny and delicious. Making it in Instant pot makes the whole process easier.
Dee | Grammy's Grid says
Oh yum, sounds really good! Thanks so much for linking up with me at #AThemedLinkup 12 for Crock Pot and Instant Pot Recipes, open February 28 to March 10. All entries shared on social media if share buttons installed.
Deb says
I just made it came out great. We have a faculty holiday dinner next weekend and I was in charge of cranberry sauce. I wanted to impress instead of buying the cans. Glad I made this because I am eating it with a spoon like it is candy. So good. I am going to freeze 1/2 for Thanksgiving with the family next month. Thanks for the
Angela says
Great idea to plan ahead for the holiday.