Skip to main content

Ginger Pear Cranberry Sauce

This sweet and tart fresh cranberry sauce with pears and ginger is a keeper! Ginger Pear Cranberry Sauce is a fruity, warmly spiced spin on homemade cranberry sauce, and it’s one of our favorites.

Homemade cranberry sauce is one of the things I insist on every Thanksgiving. I know some people prefer canned, and no shade to you, but fresh cranberry sauce is SO easy to make, it tastes amazing, and you can customize it endlessly. Plus, you can make it super far ahead of time. I say, why not make it happen?!

Table of Contents

The Story Behind the Recipe

Why You’ll Love Ginger Cranberry Sauce with Pears

Ingredients

Adaptations/Variations

How to Make Ginger Pear Cranberry Sauce

Tip for Success

How to Freeze Cranberry Sauce

More Cranberry Sauce Recipes

Jump to the Full, Printable Recipe

Read Comments & Reviews

The Story Behind the Recipe

Because I can never leave well enough alone, I’ve tinkered with homemade cranberry sauce recipes every single November for many years now. I seriously think I brought three different varieties to Thanksgiving last year, one of which was this juicy, sweet-tart, warmly spiced ginger pear cranberry sauce. Thanks for not complaining about cranberry overload, family!

I love how this cranberry sauce is just different enough to be special, but not so weird that it doesn’t go with the usual Thanksgiving dishes. The pears add nice natural sweetness – not too much, but enough to reduce the overall sugar a bit, which I love.

Why You’ll Love Ginger Cranberry Sauce with Pears

Ginger and pear make a natural, well, pair – the fresh ginger in this recipe adds a nice little bite, but not an overwhelming one. A cinnamon stick thrown in while it simmers and some freshly ground nutmeg round out the wonderful fall flavors.

Ingredients

Cranberries – Fresh cranberries. You’ll find them in the produce section of your local grocery store. But you might want to act fast! The past couple of years, many of my local grocery stores have sold out of them in the week or so before Thanksgiving.

Pears – Any sweet pear will do. I like Bartlett, Bosc, and Anjou.

Sugar – To sweeten! Cranberries are very tart, so a sweetener is really needed. You can swap in pure maple syrup or honey if you prefer.

Ginger – Fresh ginger adds a warm, slightly spicy bite.

Lemon – The zest and juice from a lemon lends a bright note of flavor.

Cinnamon and nutmeg – I find that a cinnamon stick and some nutmeg really help highlight and amp up those warm fall flavors.

Water

Adaptations/Variations

Ginger Apple Cranberry Sauce – If you prefer apples over pears, use those instead! Or just make my apple cinnamon cranberry sauce recipe instead.

Ginger Cranberry Sauce – If you love ginger but aren’t sure about the added fruit, just leave it out! You might swap the water for orange juice for an added boost of citrus flavor.

How to Make Ginger Pear Cranberry Sauce

It’s super easy to make cranberry sauce with pears! Just add everything to a medium-size saucepan, and cook it. Yep, that’s pretty much it.

When you first add everything to the saucepan, this recipe looks a bit like it’s going to be pear sauce with a few cranberries thrown in. But never fear – by the time it’s done, the pear cooks down and the cranberries are the star of the show. Which is the way it should be, of course.

You can cook it until the pears are completely dissolved, or just until the cranberries have burst and the sauce has formed and there are still chunks of pear. Your choice.

Tip for Success

Adjust for sweetness. After your ginger pear cranberry sauce is cooked, give it a quick taste. If it’s too tart for your taste, stir in some more granulated sugar, a tablespoon or two at a time, until it’s to your liking.

How to Freeze Cranberry Sauce

Homemade cranberry sauce freezes perfectly! Make it weeks or even a month ahead of time, place it in an airtight container or freezer bag, and throw it in the freezer. To thaw, just put it in the fridge overnight and it’s good.

One less thing to worry about on Thanksgiving Day!

More Cranberry Sauce Recipes

How to Make Fresh Cranberry Sauce

Orange Maple Cranberry Sauce

Raspberry Red Wine Cranberry Sauce

Apple Cranberry Sauce

Spiced Cranberry Sauce

Print

Ginger Pear Cranberry Sauce

Fresh homemade cranberry sauce, sweetened with pears and warmed with ginger, cinnamon, and nutmeg. It’s SO easy to make this cranberry sauce which is simple yet special enough for the holiday table.
Keyword cranberry sauce with pears, ginger cranberry sauce, pear cranberry sauce
Prep Time 5 minutes minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes minutes
Total Time 25 minutes minutes
Servings 8
Calories 107kcal
Author Kare

Ingredients

3 cups fresh cranberries1/2 cup granulated sugar3 medium pears Anjou, Bartlett, and Bosc are all good, about 1½ pounds total; peeled, cored, and diced2 tablespoons minced fresh ginger about 1 thumb-sized piece; peel before mincing2 teaspoons lemon zest2 tablespoons lemon juice1 cinnamon stick 4-inch stick1/4 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg3/4 cup water

Instructions

Rinse the cranberries. Discard any mushy or underripe berries and stems. 

Add all ingredients to a medium-sized saucepan. Bring to boil over medium heat, then reduce the heat to medium-low, simmering for about 15 minutes or until the berries burst and the sauce thickens.

Taste and add additional sugar, a teaspoon or two at a time, until you’ve reached your desired balance of tart and sweet.
Cool completely and serve. Keeps in an airtight refrigerated container for up to a week; freeze for up to three months.

Notes

Freezer notes: You can also freeze your cranberry sauce for up to 2 months – I do this every Thanksgiving! Just place the sauce in an airtight container or zipper freezer bag and transfer to the freezer. Move to the fridge to thaw about 24-48 hours before the big meal.

Nutrition

Serving: 2tablespoons | Calories: 107kcal | Carbohydrates: 28g | Protein: 0.5g | Fat: 0.2g | Saturated Fat: 0.04g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 0.1g | Sodium: 3mg | Potassium: 122mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 21g | Vitamin A: 41IU | Vitamin C: 10mg | Calcium: 15mg | Iron: 0.3mg

The post Ginger Pear Cranberry Sauce appeared first on Kitchen Treaty.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.