recipes

23 Cranberry Recipes That Go Way Beyond the Can

From homemade cranberry sauce to baked oatmeal, check out our favorite ways to rethink the favorite berry of the fall.
A yellow glass bowl filled with chunky cranberryorange sauce.
Photo by Michael Graydon + Nikole Herriott, food styling by Rebecca Jurkevich, prop styling by Kalen Kaminski

Whether cooked down into relish or baked into pies, there's nothing like a tart, juicy cranberry during the holidays. You know that gelatinous... stuff... you get in a can? We give you permission to leave that on the back shelf. It's time to think outside the cylinder.

  • A bowl of easy homemade cranberry sauce on a white surface.
    Photo by Laura Murray, Food Styling by Pearl Jones
    1/24

    The Easiest Cranberry Sauce

    Okay, so maybe the easiest one does come from a can. But this is also the best, most-steamlined cranberry sauce recipe you'll ever make.

    View Story
  • Photo by Michael Graydon + Nikole Herriott, food styling by Rebecca Jurkevich, prop styling by Kalen Kaminski
    2/24

    Cranberry Linzer Tart

    Inside two layers of buttery, crumbly walnut crust hides a tart cranberry filling.

    View Recipe
  • Elizabeth Cecil
    5/24

    Croque-Madame With Cranberry-Mustard Relish

    You know how the cheese sometimes oozes out of a grilled cheese while it’s cooking and gets all brown and crunchy when it hits the skillet? Well, this open-face sandwich recipe is dedicated to making that happen on purpose.

    View Recipe
  • Photo by Alex Lau, food styling by Susie Theodorou, prop styling by Kalen Kaminski
    6/24

    Fancy Jellied Cranberry Sauce

    We have a thing for canned cranberry sauce, so we dreamed up a sauce as sliceable and jiggly and fun, with deep fruit flavor and a pretty topping.

    View Recipe
  • Photo by BOBBI LIN
    7/24

    Cranberry-Lime Pie

    The spirit of a Key lime pie in the guise of a luscious cranberry curd. The contrast between the snappy press-in crust and the tart filling in this recipe is pure genius.

    View Recipe
  • Kelsey McClellan
    8/24

    Cranberry Wafer Cookies

    You could also use dried tart cherries or whole dried figs in place of the cranberries.

    View Recipe
  • Michael Graydon + Nikole Herriott
    15/24

    Cranberry and Walnut Relish

    With just a hint of sweetness, this bright, bracing uncooked relish is an antidote to all the saccharine jellylike cranberry sauces out there (unless you’re into that sort of thing).

    View Recipe
  • Danny Kim
    16/24

    Cranberry Rum Punch

    This makes you feel like you’re on vacation no matter where you are.

    View Recipe
  • 21/24

    Cranberry Spice Cake

    If you manage to have any leftovers, this moist spice cake makes a nice afternoon treat with a cup of tea. For an extra-tart garnish, serve with Citrus-Cranberry Compote (click for recipe).

    View Recipe
  • 22/24

    Cranberry Cobbler

    Absolutely acceptable to start drinking before 5. After all, it is Thanksgiving.

    View Recipe
Explore Bon AppétitCranberryThanksgiving