Spicy Cranberry Sauce

Cinnamon is doing all the heavy work in this five-ingredient holiday sauce. A single cinnamon stick steeped with the sugar syrup before the cranberries go in transforms the basic sauce into something deeper and warmer, with a faint baking-spice perfume that pairs beautifully with roast turkey or ham.

The technique here is smart. Boiling the syrup first dissolves the sugar completely and steeps the cinnamon into the liquid so the flavor infuses without leaving woody bits in the finished sauce. Add the cranberries to an already-flavored base and they pick up the spice as they pop and break down.

The no-stir rule during the second boil is the real trick. Stirring crushes the cranberries into a paste, which is fine if you want jelled sauce, but leaves you with no texture. Letting them pop and break naturally over the heat keeps some berries whole and gives the final sauce that chunky, rustic look people pay extra for at the farmers market.

A pinch of salt is the unsung hero. It sharpens the brightness of the berries against the sweet syrup and keeps the sauce from tasting one-note. Don’t skip it.

Pro Tips

• Use fresh cranberries when they’re in season. Frozen work too, no need to thaw first.
• Taste the syrup before adding the berries. If you want more spice, add cloves, allspice, or a strip of orange zest.
• The sauce thickens as it cools. Pull it off the heat while still slightly loose for the right finished texture.
• Make a day ahead. The flavors mellow and the texture sets up perfectly overnight in the fridge.

Variations

• Add 2 tablespoons of orange juice and a teaspoon of zest with the cranberries for a brighter, more classic sauce.
• Stir in a splash of port or bourbon off the heat for a grown-up version.
• For genuine heat, add a sliced jalapeño or a pinch of cayenne with the syrup to live up to the title.