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Home » Autumn » Spiced Cabernet Cranberry Sauce

Spiced Cabernet Cranberry Sauce

Published: Nov 19, 2020 · Modified: Mar 2, 2021 by Genevieve Morrison · This post may contain affiliate links

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This Cabernet cranberry sauce recipe is spiced with cinnamon, cloves and a nice pinch of nutmeg. An absolutely perfect complement for Thanksgiving turkey or Christmas goose! It’s bright, complex, so simple to prepare and such an elegant alternative to jiggly, canned cranberry sauce.

It also takes just 15 minutes to make, lasts perfectly in the fridge for a week and a half, it freezes for months and thaws as deliciously as when it was first made!

A bowl of cranberry sauce on a stone slate, surrounded by a few fresh cranberries, and a spoon of sauce.
Contents hide
1 Why This Recipe is Special
2 Ingredients Notes
3 How to Make This Recipe – Step by step
4 Common Questions
5 A Few Tips
6 Spiced Cabernet Cranberry Sauce

I’m having a small Thanksgiving with just my husband and 2 friends this year, but I want everything I make to be extra special, and I can’t wait to serve this cranberry sauce!

I’ll be making my roasted duck instead of turkey, but everything else will be perfectly traditional. An Anjou pear and mushroom stuffing with baked goat cheese mashed potatoes, and my incredibly simple crispy roasted cauliflower with cheddar and parmesan!

For dessert, I’ll be making a cranberry apple crisp and debating whether or not mini-pumpkin pies will be served as well. Suffice it to say, I’ve told our guests to bring Tupperware for the left-overs.

Why This Recipe is Special

It’s an elegant spin on a classic recipe – It’s fun to spruce up traditional recipes and it really is incredible just how much more delicious a little cabernet make cranberry sauce.

It’s all natural – Unlike canned cranberry sauces, there are obviously no preservatives, no fake sugars, no dyes. Just delicious the delicious ingredients below.

It’s so easy to make – This recipe cooks up in a snap!

Ingredients Notes

A group of ingredients for spiced Cabernet cranberry sauce on a table.

cabernet wine – You can also use a Pino Noir, Merlot, Syrah, Pino Noir Malbec or Tempranillo.

lemon juice – (Not pictured above), you only need 1 teaspoon but it makes all the difference. It add some extra brightness that makes it sing.

cranberries – I used fresh cranberries, but you can also use frozen strawberries, once thawed.

orange – You’ll just be using the zest of an orange, but if you have an orange juicer, you can just juice the orange, and not buy extra juice. You only require 2 ounces of orange juice.

A bowl of cranberries beside 2 cinnamon sicks, a sprinkling of cloves and an orange on a table.

How to Make This Recipe – Step by step

1. Use a little cheese cloth to make a tiny bundle of 1 tsp. of cloves, and tie it with a string. You can also use a tea egg if you don’t have cheese cloth.

2. In a sauce pan, add 2 oz. Cabernet wine, 2 oz. orange juice, 1 tsp. fresh lemon juice, 4 oz. white granulated sugar, zest from one small orange (about a teaspoon), 2 cinnamon sticks, a pinch of nutmeg and the bundle of cloves. Bring to a simmer over MEDIUM heat. About 3 minutes.

3. Add 6 oz. cranberries (fresh or frozen) and allow to simmer for 10 minutes on LOW, stirring occasionally.

4. Remove from heat and pour everything, including cinnamon sticks and clove bundle, into a bowl or container to refrigerate for 1 hour. Don’t worry if it appears a little runny. It will gel as it cools. Remove cinnamon sticks and cloves after 1 hour.

Keep sauce refrigerated for up to a week and a half or freeze for up to 12 months. Thaw at room temperature when ready to serve.

A collage of 4 numbered images showing how to make spiced cabernet cranberry sauce.

Common Questions

1. What meats can cranberry sauce be served with?


This cranberry sauce will go perfectly with turkey, pork, Cornish game hen, roasted chicken, ham and duck.

2. Should cranberry sauce be served hot or cold?


Cranberry sauce is traditionally served either cold or at room temperature.

3. How long will it last in the fridge?


It will keep perfectly for a week and a half in a sealed, refrigerated container, and will last for months if frozen. Simply thaw at room temperature for an hour if frozen.

A Few Tips

1. You can make this recipe with either frozen or fresh cranberries – just make sure they’re not too ripe.

You want to be sure your cranberries are nice and firm, not soft and mushy, before they go into the sauce pan. When they’re perfectly fresh, they’re just right, and frozen cranberries are frozen at the peak of freshness, so they’ll be just fine too.

2. Cranberries POP while simmering, so watch out!

Be aware that the cranberries will pop as they heat in the pan. They may not “explode” or burst in such a way that they’ll cause any harm, but they might splatter a little juice, so you may want to use a vented lid to safeguard your shirt.

A bowl of cranberry sauce on a stone slate, surrounded by a few fresh cranberries, and a spoon of sauce.

I hope you love this spiced Cabernet cranberry sauce as much as I do, and have a wonderful and safe Thanksgiving!

Help Yourself To More Thanksgiving Recipes!

  • Thanksgiving Salad with Beet, Pear & Apple Cider Vinaigrette
  • Instant Pot Pumpkin Risotto with Caramelized Onions
  • How to Create a Gorgeous Autumn Crudités
  • Pumpkin Flan with Chai Whipped Cream

For more inspiration, subscribe to my newsletter, follow me on Instagram, on Pinterest, tiktok and Facebook! And if you ever make any of my tasty drinks or treats, take a picture and tag me. I want to see!

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A bowl of cranberry sauce on a stone slate, surrounded by a few fresh cranberries, and a spoon of sauce.

Spiced Cabernet Cranberry Sauce

This cranberry sauce is an absolutely perfect complement for Thanksgiving turkey or Christmas goose! It’s bright, complex, so simple to prepare and such an elegant alternative to jiggly, canned cranberry sauce.
5 from 5 votes
Print Pin Rate
Course: Garnish
Cuisine: International
Prep Time: 3 minutes
Cook Time: 13 minutes
Total Time: 16 minutes
Servings: 6 servings
Calories: 104kcal
Author: Genevieve Morrison

Equipment

  • measuring cup
  • sauce pan
  • 3”x3” square of cheesecloth or tea egg
  • bakers string

Ingredients

  • 6 oz. cranberries – fresh or frozen
  • 2 oz. Cabernet wine
  • 2 oz. orange juice
  • 1 tsp. lemon juice
  • 4 oz. white granulated sugar
  • zest from 1 small orange
  • 2 cinnamon sticks
  • 1 tsp. cloves
  • nutmeg – just a pinch
US Customary – Metric

Instructions

  • Use a little cheese cloth to make a tiny bundle of 1 tsp. of cloves, and tie it with a string. You can also use a tea egg if you don’t have cheese cloth.
  • In a sauce pan, add 2 oz. Cabernet wine, 2 oz. orange juice, 1 tsp. fresh lemon juice, 4 oz. white granulated sugar, zest from one small orange (about a teaspoon), 2 cinnamon sticks, a pinch of nutmeg and the bundle of cloves. Bring to a simmer over MEDIUM heat. About 3 minutes.
  • Add 6 oz. cranberries (fresh or frozen) and allow to simmer for 10 minutes on LOW, stirring occasionally. 
  • Remove from heat and pour everything, including cinnamon sticks and clove bundle, into a bowl or container to refrigerate for 1 hour. Don’t worry if it appears a little runny. It will congeal as it cools. Remove cinnamon sticks and cloves after 1 hour.

Notes

Cranberries pop while simmering, so watch out! They may not “explode” or burst in such a way that they’ll cause any harm, but they might splatter a little juice, so use a vented lid to safeguard your shirt.
Make this recipe with either frozen or fresh cranberries, just make sure they’re not too ripe. You want to be sure your cranberries are nice and firm, not soft and mushy before they go into the sauce pan. 
Keep sauce refrigerated for up to a week and a half, or freeze for up to 12 months. Thaw at room temperature when ready to serve.
Nutrition information is an estimate.

Nutrition

Serving: 1ounce | Calories: 104kcal | Carbohydrates: 25g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 1g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 4mg | Potassium: 61mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 21g | Vitamin A: 36IU | Vitamin C: 10mg | Calcium: 19mg | Iron: 1mg
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Comments

  1. Candace

    December 07, 2022 at 11:39 pm

    I made this recently and could not stop eating it. I had to make another batch for dinner. Looks beautiful when serving. (:

    Reply
    • Genevieve Morrison

      December 08, 2022 at 12:02 am

      Thank you very much! So glad you liked it!

      Reply
  2. Robin Steele

    November 21, 2022 at 2:25 pm

    This cranberry sauce is absolutely wonderful! I catered a event and made appetizers with this cranberry sauce and it was a hit!!

    Reply
    • Genevieve Morrison

      November 21, 2022 at 3:16 pm

      Thank you, so much, Robin! <3

      Reply

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My name is Genevieve, and I'm just trying to be a little fancier today than I was yesterday. Sharing recipes for the creative host or hostess that are simple, elegant and colorful too!

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