Cranberry Recipes to Try This Season

By The editors of MidwestLiving.com
Updated October 10, 2020

Fresh cranberries, dried cranberries and cranberry sauce add zing to our recipes for desserts, main dishes, muffins and more.

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Sour Cream-Cranberry Muffins

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Brown sugar, pecans and pumpkin pie spice create both the filling and topping for these muffins. Dried cranberries add a hint of tang and texture.

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Not Your Ordinary Brie

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Apple-cranberry chutney adds a spicy kick to this warm, baked brie appetizer.ie

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Cranberry-Stuffed Pork Chops

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Savory sage in the stuffing mix meets cranberries in this easy pork chop recipe.

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Cranberry Orange Upside-Down Cake

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Invert this moist cake while it's still warm to reveal a fall kaleidoscope of glistening, tart berries and sweet mandarin oranges.

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Nutty Cranberry Dressing

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Put aside that bottled raspberry vinaigrette and try this amazing homemade alternative, flavored with maple syrup, Dijon mustard and toasted pecans. It's fantastic on a salad with apples or pears, goat cheese and leftover holiday turkey.

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Cranberry Layer Cake

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This moist white cake combines toasted pecans and refreshing orange peel with cranberries. Orange peel flavors the thick cream cheese frosting, too.

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Anita's Cranberry Scones

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Coarsely chopped cranberries spread the sweet-tart flavor throughout this tender scone, a winner at the Warrens Cranberry Festival recipe competition. A sweet almond frosting complements the berries.

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Cranberry-Apple Sweet Potatoes

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A new mix of pantry ingredients results in a sweet side dish with a crunchy pecan topping.

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Almond-Cranberry Bread with White Chocolate Glaze

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Sweet bread balances tangy cranberries in this winning recipe from the Wisconsin State Fair. Wrap and store it overnight to make it easier to slice and less crumbly.

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Cranberry-Pecan Tarts

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These tiny tarts mix cranberries and orange peel into a delightful pecan tassie recipe. Butter and cream cheese make the crust rich in this state fair blue-ribbon recipe from Sheila Bethia of West Allis, Wisconsin.

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Fresh Cranberry-Apple Relish

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This fresh alternative to canned cranberry sauce is flecked with festive green pistachios and flavored with cinnamon and nutmeg. Serve it with turkey (of course!), or pan-fried pork chops.

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Sweet Potato-Cranberry Cake

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Chocolate and sweet potato batters are swirled together to make this moist, tender spice cake from Patricia Polley of Columbus, Ohio. Wrap and store the cooled cake overnight for easier slicing. (It's a great alternative to coffee cake for brunches.)

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Spiced Cranberry Sauce

Credit: Adam Albright
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This shortcut recipe from Minneapolis chef Gerard Klass starts with a can of jellied cranberry sauce. It's a great holiday condiment alone, or use it as a glaze on the chef's Juicy J Salmon recipe.

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Cranberry Date Puffs

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These addictive, puff pastry-wrapped cookies have a sweet, nutty filling and are delicious when they're still slightly warm. If you have a food processor, they're a cinch to make.

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Rise and Shine Cranberry-Apple Crisp

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Spiced coconut streusel adds crunch to healthy apples and berries.

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Chocolate-Cranberry Biscotti

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Dried cranberries (or dried cherries) add a bit of texture to these crunchy chocolate biscotti. Dip in melted white chocolate or drizzle with powdered sugar icing for a sweet finish.

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Apple-Cranberry Walnut Pie

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Sweet apples balance the tang of cranberries in this fall favorite.

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Cranberry-Orange Relish

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Cranberry-Orange Relish goes well with meats, including deli turkey, bratwurst and grilled pork chops. 

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Cranberry Streusel Coffee Cake

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There's just a hint of cinnamon in the streusel for this moist cake.

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Cranberry Cashew Salad

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Sliced apples, roasted cashews and dried fruit combine with mango chutney, spinach leaves and curry for an exotic, fresh-tasting salad. The recipe comes from the New Albany (Ohio) Cooking with Friends community cookbook.

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Luscious Cranberry-Chocolate Cake

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Midwest cooking school guru Liz Clark added cranberries to this recipe from a friend in Chicago who develops recipes for restaurants. The dense, chocolatey layer cake is featured in Liz's cookbook, The Cranberry Companion.

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Cranberry-Sour Cream Pound Cake

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Dried cranberries and dairy products star in Cranberry-Sour Cream Pound Cake, created by the Midwest Living Test Kitchen to celebrate the state of Wisconsin, the nation's leading producer of cranberries.

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Badger State Muffins

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Shredded apples, chopped cranberries, shredded carrot and nuts pack this cinnamon- and coriander-spiced muffin from the M&M Cafe in Monticello, Wisconsin.

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Grammy's Wild Rice Porridge

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Wild rice may seem like an unusual breakfast ingredient, but it adds chewiness to this fruit-nut hot cereal. Dried cranberries, blueberries and cherries also cook into the porridge.

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By The editors of MidwestLiving.com