Easy Pear Cranberry Sauce
Tart, tangy, and sweet, this Easy Pear Cranberry Sauce is full of flavor, while being lower in sugar. It is a healthy homemade sauce that pairs well with so many meats and cheeses.
The Easy Pear Cranberry Sauce is a low-sugar spin on traditional cranberry sauce. This one is made with golden monk fruit sweetener, which makes it perfect for anyone watching their sugar intake this holiday season.
This homemade tart and tangy cranberry sauce is so easy to make and you only need 6 main ingredients to make it.
What are the ingredients to make this easy pear cranberry sauce?
You will need these 6 main ingredients listed below and a couple of optional spices, and they are:
- Fresh cranberries
You could also use some frozen cranberries, which sometimes tend to be sweeter. - Pears
I used ripe Bartlett pears, the riper the pears, the sweeter this sauce will be. - Lemon
For this recipe, we will be using the zest and juice of the lemon. - Water
I feel like water shouldn’t be listed on the ingredient list, but it is a key component. - Salt
Salt is the great balancer of all the tangy, sweet, and tart flavors. - Golden monk fruit sweetener
The brand I use often is Lakanto. I am not being paid to say this, it has just been the easiest to find and use in all sorts of refined sugar-free treats. If you are not watching your sugar intake, please feel free to use brown sugar or maple syrup instead.
Optional spices are cinnamon and ginger.
Ah… Cranberries! They are synonymous with the holidays.
Yet they are one fruit I usually don’t like to mess with as they are oh so tart!
I used to refer to them as only a fruit my dad could love… because love them he did! From cranberry juice to cranberry and lemon coffee cake, to canned cranberry sauce. I never knew him to turn cranberry-anything down.
Though, come to think of it, when it came to food, my dad hardly ever turned anything down.
This is our third Holiday season without my dad, and I sure do miss his always jolly self.
This Holiday season, I figured it was time I put my cranberry aversion aside and make something with cranberries, in his honor.
Instead of getting Cranberry sauce from the store like we usually do, I figured I would unite cranberries and lemons with super sweet pears, and try my hand at a lower-sugar, citrusy Easy Pear Cranberry Sauce!
On my first try, I added lemon juice instead of water, and my tongue almost rolled back into my belly because of the tartness. On my second try, I added in just one pear and absolutely no other sweetener, and the result was still just too tart.
However, I liked how my third try came out by adding in a couple of pears and a bit of monk fruit sweetener.
Now, if you are NOT trying to cut down on sugar, then go ahead and add brown sugar, maple syrup, or granulated sugar instead of the monk fruit sweetener.
And, if, the day after Thanksgiving or Christmas, you happen to have some of this Easy Pear Cranberry Sauce leftover, you can use some of it to make some quick and easy, mini Cranberry Cream Cheese Tarts.
These little Cranberry Cream Cheese Tarts can be made with store-bought puff pastry cut up and placed into a mini muffin cup, with a dollop of cream cheese and some of the leftover Citrusy Cranberry Pear Sauce.
Ingredients
Citrusy Cranberry Pear Sauce
- 1 12 ounce bag of fresh cranberries
- 2 Bartlett pears peeled and chopped
- 1 lemon you will need the zest of 1 lemon, about 1/4 teaspoon, and 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- 1/3 cup water
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup monk fruit sweetener
- OPTIONAL: 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- OPTIONAL: 1/2 teaspoon ginger
Instructions
Citrusy Cranberry Pear Sauce
- Peel and chop the pears.
- Add the cranberries, chopped and peeled pears, lemon zest, lemon juice, and water to a pan and place over a low flame.
- Cover and let simmer/cook for 10 minutes.
- Remove the lid, add in the monk fruit sweetener, ginger, and cinnamon (if using these spices), and let simmer over a low flame for another 10–12 minutes, covered.
- Remove from the heat.
- Stir in the salt to taste.
- If the pear cranberry tart is too tart, add more sweetener to sweeten to taste.
Notes
- I used ripe Bartlett pears, the riper the pears, the sweeter this sauce will be.
- If you are not watching your sugar intake, please feel free to use brown sugar or maple syrup instead.
Years back I thought fresh cranberries were something you can munch on like grapes so I grabbed a bag and never bought one again lol! I love cranberries, just not the fresh fruit ironically. I think it’s time to put aside my aversion too! These mini tarts look amazing.
These look amazing – they’d be perfect to make the day after thanksgiving, too – use up the leftover sauce!
Pears is such a great addition to this cranberry sauce!!! I love that idea!
I’m so sorry you have lost your Dad. Holidays are always hard when our parents are gone. Your Citrusy Cranberry Pear Sauce and Cranberry Cream Cheese Tartlets look delicious. Love how you have used the pear to take the edge off the tartness of the cranberries. =
I love the addition of the pears to this cranberry sauce..
These mini tarts look so adorable and bet they are divine with cranberry sauce.
Pear and quince are great partners for cranberries. Looks divine.
The cranberry and pear sauce sounds so versatile Shashi.
Love the tart cranberries in this dessert! 🙂
I love everything about this recipe! The tarts will be a perfect holiday themed dessert at our house this month. #client
Hi Shashi, I saw your cranberry recipe yesterday on Google+, or was it Instagram? Lol wherever!
Anyway I got really excited because it reminded me of the forthcoming holidays and all the Christmas bakes that are on their way!
Super yummy pictures here of my favourite Christmas fruit. 🙂
Pears + cranberries sound like an amazing combination, Shashi! This totally makes me think of being inside on a cold winter day with the fireplace roaring away. Ok, maybe I just described Thanksgiving Day. These would make for an excellent addition to the Turkey Day table this year. I love baking with cranberries at this time of the year! 🙂
What a amazing color of recipe Shashi! it looks beautiful and I am sure it must be very tasty as well. Can’t wait to try….
This will be my second Christmas without my dad so I know how you feel! Loved the memories about him. Saw this on Instagram and knew I had to come check it out – the color is gorgeous!
Hi friend – I know you are missing your dad. He would be so incredibly proud of you. The cranberry pear sauce looks absolutely amazing Shashi – must try. We will keep some Nexium 24 on hand too – great reminder. No one should have to miss out on any of the feastivities. We will be in PA for Thanksgiving with my Aunt Pinkie and extended family there. Have a wonderful week my friend. XOXO
Cranberry and pear are the fruits very good for the health of older people, especially those with cardiovascular disease or diabetes. So I think your recipe citrusy cranberry pear sauce and cranberry cream cheese tartlets is so suitable for my parents. Thank you for yoru guide. Cranberry, pear and lemon is very great when going together. This create a flavor so enchanting with everybody. Really really love it. It will surely appear in my Christmas party!