16 Creative Ways To Use Canned Cranberry Sauce

As the weather gets cooler and the leaves start tumbling down off the branches, it's time to focus on the most food-centric holiday of the year: Thanksgiving. Everyone knows the all-star lineup: turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing, gravy, pie, and the best condiment of them all: cranberry sauce. While some households will resort to a homemade cranberry sauce recipe other folks will turn to ol' reliable — canned cranberry sauce.

Whether you're racking your brain with how to use up the leftover cranberry sauce from Thanksgiving, or you discover a can of it tucked way back in your pantry during the spring months, you're in luck. We've curated a list of some of our absolute favorite ways to put this fruity condiment to good use for savory, sweet, and everything in between. Many of these applications can utilize canned jelly or sauce, and we've noted specific instances where one may be more preferable over the other.

Cranberries and cocktails go together better than you may think. While the cocktail scene is dominated by fruity additions like grenadine, orange juice, and citrus, canned cranberry sauce can be a versatile and flavorful addition to a range of classic cocktails. For the ultimate post-Thanksgiving cocktail, try mixing together the sauce with bourbon. For extra bubbles, crack open a can of ginger ale or ginger beer, or opt for a lemon-lime soda for a more neutral effervescent backdrop.

Alternatively, you can kick off Thanksgiving (or even Christmas) morning the right way with a cranberry mimosa. Add a spoonful of the sauce to the glass and top it off with your favorite prosecco or Champagne. An orange garnish — or even a handful of frozen cranberries — can't hurt.

Despite being a very sweet ingredient, cranberry sauce is rarely employed in the realm of desserts. If you have a can open from Thanksgiving, you may want to consider adding it to your slice of cheesecake. Cheesecake is very dense and flavorful, thanks to the inclusion of heavy ingredients like ricotta and/or cream cheese. Adding a spoonful of cranberry sauce to the top will help liven up the bite and offers a bold, bursting brightness that will have you coming back for another slice.

You can just spoon the cranberry sauce directly on top of your slice before serving, or swirl it into your batter before baking. This hack also works for no-bake cheesecakes, which are arguably the perfect low-stress dessert for Thanksgiving. 

You may be familiar with the marinara-coated meatballs of your youth, but what about cocktail meatballs? This old-school ground beef appetizer is a must-have for parties, and it's easy to whip up in bulk. It usually relies on a unique ingredient to give it its signature flavor: grape jelly. If you're out of grape jelly or are simply looking to switch up your cocktail meatball routine, consider pulling out a can of cranberry sauce instead. 

Cranberry sauce has similar tart and sweet notes, and it meshes well with other ingredients in the sauce like barbecue sauce and brown sugar. This is one instance where jellied cranberry sauce is actually preferable to chunky sauce, as it will keep the texture smooth and decadent. 

Muffins (and quick breads as a whole) are no strangers to fruity additions. Blueberries, strawberries, and the like all make an appearance from time to time, but why not skip the fresh (or frozen) fruit step and opt for cranberry sauce instead? Canned cranberry sauce will not only add moisture to your recipe, but it will also infuse every bite with a delectably fruity flavor. 

There is a ton of room to experiment with other tasty additions here, too. Chopped walnuts or candied pecans would add a dense bite and extra fat, while chocolate chips can enhance its moisture content and act as the perfect foil to the sweet and tart sauce.

Move over maple syrup: there's a new pancake topping in town. Pancakes can be very dense and heavy — especially when you're trying to down a whole stack of them — which is where canned cranberry sauce can come in handy. You can use this topping as your solo accompaniment, or spoon on homemade honey whipped cream. We recommend trying this pairing for stuffed pancakes as well; a heavy ricotta-stuffed batch will be made all the more tasty with a cranberry topping. 

You can swirl the cranberry sauce into the batter, too. However, it will turn your pancakes pink. You can also garnish your other favorite breakfast treats, like waffles, French toast, and crêpes, with it. 

Cranberry sauce is the funky, flavorful addition that you didn't know your batch of cornbread needed. Even the most basic of cornbread recipes tend to lean slightly sweet, as the cornmeal gives it a nutty and subtly sugary profile. When you add in cranberry sauce, though, you get the perfect juxtaposition of rich, buttery cornbread and tart sauce. The condiment adds complexity to the cornbread without coloring too far outside of the lines.

There are many ways you can go about adding cranberry sauce to your cornbread. You can add the chunky sauce to your batter when you're preparing it, and then bake it in your vessel of choice (cast iron is our recommendation, as it ensures perfectly crispy edges and a moist center).

Pulled pork and fruit may seem like strange bedfellows at first, but they are actually two peas in a pod. Some folks will add apples to their pulled pork recipe for moisture and flavor, but we're here to propose an equally (if not more) tasty alternative: cranberry sauce. If you're opting for the slow-cooker method, add whole-fruit cranberry sauce to the pot after the meat has been shredded. You can also amp up the fruity flavor even more by adding cranberry juice to the cooker at the beginning (in lieu of apple cider or some other cooking liquid) so that the pork absorbs that flavor. 

Other recipes add the cranberry sauce to the slow cooker at the beginning, but you'll want to be mindful that the sugar in the sauce does not over-caramelize and cause the meat to burn. Adding it at the end of the cooking process will ensure that those fruity notes are more pronounced.

Thumbprint cookies are extremely underrated. Not only do you get a buttery cookie on the edges and underneath, but you also get the sweet, sugary taste of the jelly or jam filling. Thumbprint cookies can be filled with practically anything sauce-adjacent, from lemon curd and raspberry jam to Nutella, but we're going to throw another hat in the ring: cranberry sauce. While it offers the same sweetness as conventional jams and jellies, it adds an extra tart boost to every bite. 

Both jellied and whole berry cranberry sauce can be used for your cookies. Simply press a dimple into the center of the raw dough, fill with a little spoonful of cranberry sauce, and bake them away. You can also finish them off with a drizzle of vanilla glaze after they've cooled.

If your homemade vinaigrette is looking otherwise uninspired, consider adding a little bit of cranberry sauce to it. This addition will offer a tart, slightly acidic bite that will balance well with both the oil and the vinegar. 

You'll want to use whole-berry cranberry sauce here for the best texture. Simply add the sauce, oil, vinegar, and any other flavors to a blender, pulsing until the mixture is smooth, then pouring it over your salad or veggies of choice. One excellent use for a cranberry-infused dressing would be a fall-inspired salad; think walnuts, pecans, goat cheese, roasted squash, and apple slices.

We would be remiss not to mention the Thanksgiving sandwich on our list of the best ways to use canned cranberry sauce: two slices of bread sandwiching all the familiar fixings like stuffing, mashed potatoes, turkey, and a whole lot of cranberry sauce. However, cranberry sauce actually shines in other, non-Thanksgiving sandwiches as well. You can enhance your grilled cheese by adding a swipe of cranberry sauce to the bread before assembling it. Not only can it add a delectably tart flavor to complement cheddar or American cheese, but you can also use it for richer cheeses, like Brie and Gouda.

Not only does jellied or classic cranberry sauce work for sandwiches, but you could also mix it with mayo to create a flavorful, tart aioli. This will make it easier to spread, and you can blend it to get rid of any remaining chunks with the help of a blender.

Smoothies are an excellent way to use up leftover sweet ingredients. A handful of berries on their way out? A banana that is a little too spotty to eat out of hand? Yogurt that looked appealing yesterday, but not today? Toss them right in, and add a little bit of cranberry sauce while you're at it. If you like the taste of cranberry on its own, consider just adding the sauce to your blender with yogurt and milk, and then experimenting from there. The acidity of the sauce will also cut through rich smoothie additions like dairy, bananas, and even some nut butters, while its sweetness will balance out the tartness of the other ingredients in your mix. Depending on how sweet it is, the cranberry sauce may even be able to replace the maple syrup or honey you'd normally add to your recipe.

You can sip your cranberry smoothie, or use it as a base for a tasty smoothie bowl. Plain or honey granola, slivered almonds, sliced banana, and coconut flakes would be the perfect crunchy foil to this sweet breakfast (or snack).

It's alright, we won't tell your roast turkey that you've been pairing cranberry sauce with other types of meat. The sauce not only adds fruity flavor, but it can also add a layer of moisture, complexity, and depth to a range of proteins. The next time you are looking for a dressing for your roast ham, for example, you can turn to cranberry sauce for a flavorful glaze. Mix together whole-berry cranberry sauce with vinegar (for acidity) and maple syrup or honey (for sweetness) before glazing it on your meat as it roasts. Just be sure to reserve some of that sauce for later to serve it with.

Another meat-centric dish that could use a little help from cranberry sauce? Meatloaf. It's usually topped with a ketchup glaze, which caramelizes and becomes sweeter as it bakes, but a cranberry-infused topping would be even more flavorful. Stir your cranberry sauce with some brown sugar, Worcestershire sauce, and maybe a little ketchup for tradition's sake. This topping works well for both beef- and turkey-based meatloaf.

What can't go on pizza? From fun fruits to unique sauces, there are so many different ways to experiment with this beloved dish — including by adding cranberry sauce to it. While some of the uses for canned cranberry sauce listed here are forgiving, pizza is not. If your toppings are too heavy or too wet, you risk weighing down the pizza crust, compromising its structural integrity, or making it soggy. Therefore, you need to express some restraint with how much of it you use on your pie. 

Not only will cranberry add dimension to an otherwise bland and boring crust, but it will also pair well with salty meats, fresh veggies and fruits, and rich cheeses. Swap the classic tomato sauce base for a very thin layer of cranberry sauce before loading it up with Brie, roast turkey, and spinach for the ultimate take on Thanksgiving leftovers. Alternatively, you can carefully place dollops of the sauce on a white pie, and pair it with fatty prosciutto, peppery arugula, and chopped walnuts. 

Neither pies nor cranberry sauce are strangers to Thanksgiving, but have you thought of mashing the two together for the most fun and creative duo of the year? Cranberry sauce's tart yet sweet flavor can mesh well with many types of fruits in everything from pies to cobblers and crisps. If you're new to the cranberry sauce game, start with a neutral fruit, like apples. The warm cinnamon in the filling, combined with the sweet and crunchy apples, is the perfect base for a cranberry sauce infusion.

Unlike fresh cranberries, cranberry sauce is usually already pre-sweetened, so you may want to cut down on the amount of sugar in your recipe to compensate. You could even make hand pies entirely out of cranberry sauce if you have a ton of it on hand. 

Who needs hot fudge sundae-flavored Pop-Tarts when you can make your own at home? This is an excellent way to use up leftover pie dough scraps, though you could also use frozen puff pastry for a laminated and buttery texture. To assemble, simply cut the pastry into small rectangles, add your whole-berry cranberry sauce to the center, and place the other piece of dough on top. While you can use canned cranberry sauce straight, you can also mix it with a bit of lemon or orange zest for extra acidity and brightness. 

The cranberry sauce can stand alone in these homemade Pop-Tarts, but if you truly want the euphoric childhood experience, whip up a simple vanilla or almond extract-infused glaze for after the pastries have fully cooled. They're a kid-friendly treat that can be enjoyed for breakfast or dessert, or as a sweet snack. 

Cranberry sauce can be a challenging ingredient to work with, not because its flavor doesn't mesh well with others or because it's too acidic, but because of its texture. If you want to easily make cranberry sauce spreadable, you're going to have to mix it with a neutral base, like butter. Cranberry-infused compound butter is a tasty and seasonal topping for toast, dinner rolls, and more. Making it is as simple as can be: bring a stick of butter up to room temperature, mix it with your canned cranberry sauce in a stand or hand mixer, and store it in wax paper or an airtight container for later. 

You don't have to stop at just cranberries, either. If you plan on using your cranberry compound butter on pancakes, try adding a drizzle of honey or maple syrup to your mixer. For something more savory, consider complementing the berry's tartness with a couple of sprigs of fresh thyme or rosemary.