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This clean cranberry apple sauce recipe (with no refined sugar!) will definitely be a new addition to our Thanksgiving side dishes table this year. Growing up, my mom always made the best cranberry sauce recipe, but she only made it for Thanksgiving. The rest of the year she made a healthy applesauce recipe , a standby side dish she always served anytime we had a turkey dinner that wasn’t on Thansgiving. Neither mom’s cranberry sauce or apple sauce recipes were made with sugar, instead she sweetened them both with pureed dried fruit. Keep in mind, this is the mom who sent me to nursery school with a box of raisins so I wouldn’t eat the Oreo cookies given to the rest of the class (wink.)
Anyway, with the biggest culinary event of the year occurring in less than 2-weeks at our house, I asked my mom if she could be in charge of making the cranberry sauce for the 20 people we will be hosting Thanksgiving dinner for this year. Of course mom said yes and she totally outdid herself with this clean cranberry apple sauce recipe! It is so delicious that I asked if she could make a double batch so I could freeze some and have it after Thanksgiving.
Clean Cranberry Apple Sauce Recipe Can Be Enjoyed All Year Long
It’s funny, because I love cranberry sauce so much but I never once think to make it any other time of the year other than Thanksgiving. Same goes for other classic Thanksgiving side dishes including pumpkin pie, green bean casserole and even a whole turkey for that matter! I mean, who ever makes a whole turkey other than on Thanksgiving (other than my mom?) But in all seriousness, this cranberry apple sauce recipe can be enjoyed all year long!
7 Easy Leftover Ideas for Your Cranberry Apple Sauce Recipe
If you can’t think of a single thing to do with your cranberry apple sauce recipe other than to top it on leftover turkey, I’ve got 7 easy ideas below:
- Stir cranberry apple sauce into oatmeal for a delicious breakfast.
- Make a plant-based yogurt parfait with Kite Hill brand plain almond yogurt, cranberry apple sauce and chopped pecans.
- Make a turkey, white bean and cranberry apple sauce tostada on Food for Life brand sprouted corn tortillas and Miyokos brand nut cheese.
- Turn your cranberry apple sauce recipe into a nutrition-packed breakfast smoothie by pureeing together 1/2 cup cranberry sauce, 1 cup plain “whole” almond milk (such as the New Barn brand), 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon and 1/2 cup ice.
- Top your favorite gluten free waffle recipe with cranberry apple sauce!
- Make a crostini appetizer with sprouted whole grain bread, Miyokos brand nut-cheese spread and a dollop of cranberry apple sauce.
- Use it as a dip to make with a clean cheese board (check out to make a beautiful and dairy free cheese board with my favorite nut cheeses.)
***If you are looking for more creative recipe ideas, the Pioneer Woman shares 20 ways to use leftover cranberry sauce HERE!***
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This clean cranberry apple sauce recipe is made without refined sugar and sweetened with a surprise superfood (pureed figs!)
Ingredients
- 2 cups dried figs (stems removed)
- 5 cups raw cranberries
- 4 cups water
- 1 1/2 large organic apple (seeded and chopped (we leave the skins on for extra fiber!))
- 1/4 cup date sugar (or coconut palm sugar)
Instructions
- Add the dried figs to a small saucepan and cover with water. Bring water to a boil and cook figs for about 5 minutes, until soft. Drain figs from water but reserve 1/4 cup of the liquid. Set figs and reserved liquid aside to cool.
- Add cranberries and 4 cups of water to a large saucepan. Bring water to a rolling boil. Add the apples, cover and boil for 6 minutes. Remove cranberry-apple mixture from the stove and set aside.
- Add the figs and 1 tablespoon of the reserved water to a high speed blender and process until smooth (adding 1 tablespoon water at a time if the mixture is too thick.)
- Fold the fig mixture in with the cranberry-apple mixture. Stir in the sugar. Transfer cranberry apple sauce recipe to a covered container and store in the refrigerator for up to 5 days (or freeze for up to a month.)
P.S. If you are making the cranberry apple sauce recipe for the holiday, be sure to check out my additional (clean!) Thanksgiving side dishes,my 4 rules for buying the best turkey and my gluten free/ dairy free pumpkin pie recipe!
Can dates be used instead of figs? Unfortunately I am not a fan of figs but would like a clean recipe.
Hi Laura! Great question. And yes! Although I have not personally tested it I have cooked enough with both figs and dates to say that you can definitely substitute dates for the figs. I think it will be delicious! Please let me know how it turns out =)