This homemade whole berry cranberry sauce is the perfect holiday side dish. Made with fresh cranberries, golden raisins, spiced rum, granulated sugar, light brown sugar, and a touch of cinnamon, sea salt, and vanilla, this rum-raisin-flavored cranberry sauce adds a special touch to any holiday meal. The tartness of the cranberries, the sweetness of the sugars, and the spiciness of the rum all come together to make a delicious and unique cranberry sauce that will be a hit with your holiday guests.
Are you the type of person who likes a wee little jiggle in your cranberry sauce, or are you the type of person who prefers your cranberry sauce to be chunky and full of recognizable fruit? As a cranberry sauce addict, I’ll take it pretty much any way I can get it. Cut into slices, straight out of the can, or homemade with lots of add-ins. When it comes to cranberry sauce, I’ll pretty much always say, “Pass the cranberry sauce, please.” This cranberry sauce here though, might just be my new all-time favorite. It’s holiday-spiced, has lots of fruity texture, and is full of plump golden raisins with a nice hint of rum flavoring. It’s also not too watery or liquified. Because if there’s one thing about cranberry sauce that might actually annoy me, it’s when it runs all over my plate. Cranberry sauce needs to know its place, which is preferably right next to my turkey and far away from my deviled eggs.
Ingredients:
- 1 (12-oz.) Bag Fresh Cranberries
- 1/2 Cup Golden Raisins
- 1/3 Cup Granulated Sugar
- 1/3 Cup Light Brown Sugar, Packed
- 1/3 Cup Spiced Rum
- 1/2 Teaspoon Sea Salt
- 1/2 Teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
- 1 Teaspoon Vanilla
Directions:
- Place all of the ingredients, except for the vanilla, in a heavy-bottomed non-stick saucepan over high heat. Stir the sauce constantly.
- Allow the sauce to come to a boil. When the cranberries have popped open, the sauce becomes burgundy, and the sauce has begun to thicken, reduce the heat to medium-low.
- Continue cooking the mixture for 3 to 5 minutes, smashing the berries open with the back of a wooden spoon or spatula.
- When the sauce has thickened and the majority of the berries have been smashed open, remove the sauce from the heat.
- Stir in the vanilla and then spoon the sauce into a heat-proof container.
- Allow the cranberry sauce to cool, and then refrigerate it until well chilled.
Suggestions:
- Rinse and strain the cranberries before placing them in the saucepan, making sure to pick out any cranberries that are bad.
- I used Captain Morgan Original Spiced Rum for this cranberry sauce. Spiced rum adds more flavor, however, you can replace it with any variety of dark rum.
- Stir the sauce constantly to prevent sticking or burning.
- Store the cranberry sauce in a glass container that will not stain.
- The cranberry sauce will solidify while in the refrigerator; stir the sauce well before serving it to help break it up and make it look more attractive.
Improvements:
- If you prefer a looser cranberry sauce, add a little bit of water or more rum to thin the sauce out.
- Fold finely chopped walnuts or pecans into this cranberry sauce.
- Replace the vanilla with maple extract.
- Add 1/4 cup of shredded unsweetened coconut.
Ingredients:
- 1 (12-oz.) Bag Fresh Cranberries
- 1/2 Cup Golden Raisins
- 1/3 Cup Granulated Sugar
- 1/3 Cup Light Brown Sugar, Packed
- 1/3 Cup Spiced Rum
- 1/2 Teaspoon Sea Salt
- 1/2 Teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
- 1 Teaspoon Vanilla
Directions:
- Place all of the ingredients, except for the vanilla, in a heavy-bottomed non-stick saucepan over high heat. Stir the sauce constantly.
- Allow the sauce to come to a boil. When the cranberries have popped open, the sauce becomes burgundy, and the sauce has begun to thicken, reduce the heat to medium-low.
- Continue cooking the mixture for 3 to 5 minutes, smashing the berries open with the back of a wooden spoon or spatula.
- When the sauce has thickened and the majority of the berries have been smashed open, remove the sauce from the heat.
- Stir in the vanilla and then spoon the sauce into a heat-proof container.
- Allow the cranberry sauce to cool, and then refrigerate it until well chilled.
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