This easy homemade Tequila Lime Cranberry Sauce is a fresh twist on traditional cranberry sauce for something a little different this holiday.
It's just as easy to make and even better if you make it a day or two before to simplify your holiday meal preparations.
This recipe is a twist on my mother-in-law's Brandied Whole Cranberry Sauce served at every holiday meal since my husband can remember.
But, I wanted to switch things up a bit and was inspired by one of my favorite holiday cocktails: the cranberry margarita.
A simple swap of tequila for the brandy, plus a splash of triple sec and some fresh lime and you have a beautiful bright colored and flavored cranberry sauce.
Simplify your holiday meal preparation: Make it ahead.
Who has the time, or oven space, to bake the cranberry sauce for an hour on the big day? No one!
But, Cranberry Sauce is better made a day or two ahead of time to give the sauce time to gel a bit and for the flavors to fully develop. It might taste good right after cooking, but it becomes amazing after chilling in the fridge.
Put it straight into your serving dish and cover it before chilling to make things even easier at serving time.
Does the Alcohol Cook Away?
There are quite a few factors involved in the burning off of the alcohol including the temperature, length of cooking time, size of the pan, etc.
You can get more details here, but I calculate that a ½ cup serving with tequila and triple sec at 40-50% (80-100 proof) alcohol comes out to less than half a teaspoon of alcohol per serving, or about 0.7% ABV. Which is really close to the US Food and Drug requirement of less than 0.5% ABV to be considered "trace" amounts of alcohol.
BUT, that can still be too much for people that abstain from alcohol for health, religious or personal reasons.
Family Friendly Cranberry Sauce Options
For an alcohol free option you can use an alcohol-free tequila alternative. Yes, there are now varieties that taste like tequila (or other spirits) without any alcohol. I have not tried it personally, but have heard good things about Ritual and ArKay.
Or use a combination of lime juice with a splash of orange juice.
Or try this easy Gingered Pear Cranberry Sauce.
More Make Ahead Holiday Recipes from #OurFamilyTable
Whether it is side dishes for the big day or breakfast or dinner casseroles we've got some simple recipes to take some of the stress out of the holiday season.
- Breakfast Enchiladas from Devour Dinner
- Caramel Apple Pecan Cheesecake from The Spiffy Cookie
- Cheesy Potato Casserole from Cheese Curd In Paradise
- Easy Make Ahead Sausage Balls from A Kitchen Hoor's Adventures
- Everything Bagel Breakfast Casserole from Jen Around the World
- Make Ahead Breakfast Casserole from Fresh April Flours
- Make-Ahead White Whole Wheat Poppy Seed Buns from Karen's Kitchen Stories
- Slow Cooker Hashbrown Casserole from Hostess At Heart
- Tequila Lime Whole Cranberry Sauce from That Recipe
- Vegan Pumpkin Halwa from Magical Ingredients
- Yummy Sweet Potato Casserole with Pecan Topping from Blogghetti
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Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 lime
- 3 cups fresh cranberries (one 12 ounce bag)
- 1 cup sugar
- ¼ cup tequila
- 1 tablespoon triple sec (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 300° F.
- Zest the lime and cut in half.
- Rinse cranberries and discard any dried or mushy ones.
- In a medium casserole dish, combine cranberries, sugar, tequila, triple sec, lime zest and the juice of the lime.
- Bake for 1 hour, stirring once or twice to keep the cranberries moist.
- Let chill before serving, preferably overnight.
Sound fabulous? Share it!
Until next time, happy eating!
~Audrey
Lisa
This will make life easier by making this ahead. Love the freshness this sauce has.