Learn how to make a delicious and healthy paleo cranberry sauce with cherries—perfect for Thanksgiving and beyond!
Table of Contents
What is paleo cranberry sauce?
My paleo cranberry sauce is a healthier, naturally sweetened twist on the classic holiday side dish, and this one’s inspired by the cranberry-cherry-apple juice blends I loved as a kid. Traditional cranberry sauces often rely on a ton of sugar to balance the tartness of the cranberries, but I was determined to create a version that’s Paleo and Whole30-friendly—without sacrificing flavor.
By themselves, cranberries can be unpalatably bitter and sour. But here’s the trick: adding an equal amount of sweet cherries and simmering the fruit in apple juice balances the mouth-puckering tartness with just the right amount of natural sweetness. If you like your sauce a bit sweeter, just a drizzle of honey will do the job.
Why you’ll love this paleo cranberry sauce
You’re going to adore this Paleo Cranberry Sauce because it checks all the boxes for a stress-free and delicious holiday side dish! It’s made with simple, wholesome ingredients that you probably already have in your pantry and freezer—like frozen sweet cherries, apple juice, and a drizzle of honey (if you want a touch of extra sweetness). No fancy gadgets or exotic ingredients required!
This sauce comes together in a jiffy, so you won’t be stuck in the kitchen for hours. Plus, it’s naturally sweetened and free of refined sugars, making it perfect for anyone following a paleo lifestyle—or really, anyone who just loves a tangy-sweet, flavorful cranberry sauce.
The best part? You can make it ahead of time and stash it in the fridge until the big day. One less thing to stress about when you’re wrangling a turkey or setting the table! Trust me—this is the cranberry sauce your holiday spread has been waiting for.
Ingredients
- Frozen cranberries: Yes, I use frozen cranberries and you don’t need to thaw them ahead of time!
- Frozen sweet cherries: No need to buy fresh and no need to thaw ahead of time! Frozen sweet cherries are frozen at the peak of ripeness so you don’t need a ton of extra honey to balance out the tartness of the cranberries.
- Apple juice: I like Martinelli’s brand the best!
- Minced fresh ginger
- Diamond Crystal kosher salt
- Honey (optional): If you want a sweeter cranberry sauce, add honey to taste!
How to make paleo cranberry sauce
Measure out the cranberries and cherries and place them in a small saucepan.
No kitchen scale? Just use half a 12-ounce bag of cranberries and measure out about an equal amount of frozen cherries. Or measure ~1½ cups of frozen cranberries + 1½ cups of frozen sweet cherries. Easy peasy.
Pour in the apple juice, minced ginger, and the salt.
Bring the contents of the pan to a boil over high heat…
…and then reduce the heat to maintain a simmer.
Simmer the sauce, uncovered, for about 8 to 10 minutes or until it’s thickened and the fruit has broken down.
Taste for sweetness and add honey, to taste, if desired.
If you prefer a smoother sauce, blitz it with an immersion blender!
Transfer the sauce to a serving dish and cool to room temperature before serving with your Turkey Day dinner!
How to store the sauce
The paleo cranberry sauce can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to five days. Just take it out and bring to room temperature before serving!
More paleo Thanksgiving recipes
- Spatchcock Turkey
- Umami Gravy
- Instant Pot Autumn Mash
- Easy Asian Roasted Brussels Sprouts Salad with Citrus & Ginger Dressing
- Pumpkin Custard Cups
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Looking for more recipe ideas? Head on over to my Recipe Index. You’ll also find exclusive recipes in my cookbooks, Nom Nom Paleo: Food for Humans (Andrews McMeel Publishing 2013), Ready or Not! (Andrews McMeel Publishing 2017), and Nom Nom Paleo: Let’s Go! (Andrews McMeel Publishing 2022).
PRINTER-FRIENDLY RECIPE CARD
Paleo Cranberry Sauce with Cherries
Ingredients
- 6 ounces frozen cranberries
- 6 ounces frozen sweet cherries
- ¾ cup apple juice I like Martinelli’s brand
- ½ teaspoon minced fresh ginger
- ¼ teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt
- 2 tablespoons honey or more to taste (optional)
Instructions
- Measure out the cranberries and cherries and place them in saucepan. (No kitchen scale? Just use half a 12-ounce bag of cranberries and measure out about an equal amount of frozen cherries. Or measure 1½ cups of frozen cranberries + 1½ cups of frozen sweet cherries. Easy peasy.)
- Pour in the apple juice, minced ginger, and a pinch of salt.
- Bring the contents of the pan to a boil over high heat, and then reduce the heat to maintain a simmer. Cook the sauce for 8 to 10 minutes or until it’s thickened and the fruit has broken down.
- Taste for sweetness and add honey if needed. Cool to room temperature and serve with your Turkey Day dinner—or better yet, make it up to 5 days in advance and keep it in a tightly sealed container in the fridge.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Is there any reason I can’t use fresh cranberries to make this?
You can use fresh cranberries!
Wooohooo! Thanks for the clarification. I’ve got frozen, locally picked lowbush (wild) cranberries I picked this fall, but they are SOOO tart. Buying commercially grown cranberries means I won’t have to add so much sweetener.
Creative and healthy alt to canned cranberry. Thank you! I’m following your thanksgiving timeline — and making this today!
This sounds perfect, only I cannot find frozen cranberries anywhere, only frozen cherries. Can I cook this with fresh cranberries and frozen cherries—if so how?
Do you know if this can be frozen?
Definitely!
Do you think I can use dried cherries and cook in the Instant Pot?
I haven’t tried it, but I bet it would work.
Michelle, I’ve looked at this recipe over and over, and I just couldn’t imagine it being better than the orange-and-cranberry-relish recipe (with about 1/2 the sugar called for), so even this year, as I decided I’d try it because every one of your recipes are amazing, I also made the relish first, and put it in the refrigerator. I was so wrong! From now on I’m using your recipe. It’s so much better than any other, and now, as I’m writing this, I have another pot of it on the stove so I can freeze it in 1 cup ball jars for other times. Thank you so much!😊
Amazing Cran-Cherry sauce, I have been making it for more than 7 years. My husband loves it so much that asked me to double up on the recipe. Thanks for such a great healthy version of cranberry sauce.
We are so happy to hear that Elizabeth!
I still love the old cranberry orange uncooked relish but no one else does. They all prefer the store bought jelled sauce. But EVERYONE loved this cherry-cranberry sauce version!! I did use a bit more honey, maybe 3T. This will be a standard part of all our future holiday meals.
I’ve made this for the past 2 Thanksgivings. It’s so good! I love that it’s tart. I don’t add honey but like that you include it as an option.
I plan to try this, but being diabetic I definitely won’t be putting honey in it! If I need a little more sweetness, I will be adding a little Splenda. Splenda being one of the safest alternatives to sugar, since recent studies show any of the others that contain any of the so called sugar alcohols increase the risk of stroke or heart attack in diabetics by as much as 30%. This includes the Monk Fruit blends and others. Read your labels folks! These studies came out of the Cleveland Clinic one of the top Heart Institutes.