Homemade Cranberry Pie Filling Recipe is so delicious. Fresh cranberries are cooked into a sweet, tart pie filling that is so delicious!
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Around the holidays you always here people talking about apple and pumpkin pie, but let's not forget about cranberries. This cranberry pie filling is SO delicious and festive.
Sweet, tart and tasty. Fill your favorite pie crust with this yummy pie filling, or simply spread it on your morning bagel with cream cheese.
If you're a cranberry lover, you'll love these Cranberry Orange Scones, Cranberry White Chocolate Cookies, and our favorite Cranberry Pie Recipe.
Why You Should Make this Easy Cranberry Pie Filling
- Delicious: This cranberry pie filling in a tasty combination of tart and sweet mixed with those warm spices we love in the winter months.
- Easy: No complicated instructions here, and you only need 1 pot!
- Festive: This cranberry pie filling is so pretty and festive for the holidays! Great in a pie, or on top of ice cream!
Cranberry Filling for Pie Ingredients
How To Make Cranberry Pie Filling
- Heat a medium-sized pot over low/medium heat on the stove. Add all the ingredients except the cornstarch.
- Simmer for about 25 minutes or until the cranberries have burst and begun to reduce.
- Once the cranberries have burst, combine the cornstarch with enough cold water to dissolve it, and stir in the cornstarch mixture.
- If the mixture is very thick, remove it from heat and set aside. If it is still liquidy, simmer an additional 5-10 minutes until thickened, remove from heat and set aside. Once mostly cooled, the filling should be the consistency of a thick jam.
How to Store Cranberry Pie Filling:
Storing: Store in a sealed container in the fridge for up to 1 week. I found that it is stored best in a mason jar. This needs to be refrigerated or it will go bad.
Freezing: You can store in the freezer for up to 3 months in an airtight container.
Substitutions for this Recipe:
Fresh Cranberries: Since we're cooking them, fresh or frozen cranberries will work.
Sugar: We don't recommend substituting white sugar unless you have to, but White sugar can be used interchangeably with brown sugar. Check out this post on Sugar Substitutes for Baking for other ideas.
Apple Juice: Apple juice can be replaced with water if needed.
Vanilla Extract: Helps to add flavor, we don't recommend substituting.
Ground Cinnamon: Helps to add flavor, we don't recommend substituting.
Ground Ginger: Helps to add flavor, we don't recommend substituting.
Cornstarch: We don't recommend substituting cornstarch as this is what makes our pie filling thick and jammy.
Cranberry Pie Filling Recipe Tips and Variations
- Use it on other desserts - The great thing about pie filling is that it tastes great with other desserts outside of pie. Some of my favorite recipes to pair this filling with are my Southern Style Berry Cobbler, add a spoonful to Instant Pot Rice Pudding, or to top Coconut Scones, Cranberry Orange Scones or this Cranberry Cheesecake!
- Reheating - Reheat using the stove or microwave. You can also add it straight to your pie before baking and let the cooking process heat it up.
- Add other berries - Adding another berry to this pie filling is a delicious idea! I often substitute half of the cranberries for other fruit options such as blackberries, raspberries, blueberries, etc.
- Serve it as dessert! This is great on it's own with vanilla ice cream or alongside our Ginger Cake!
Cranberry Pie Filling Fresh Cranberries FAQ
Raw cranberries can be used in many different ways. Toss them in a cake mix, blend them in a smoothie, or add a pop of color to your cocktails. You can also stock up on the holiday cranberry sales and freeze them for next year!
You do not. When used in a pie filling cooking them first will result in a sweet and jammy pie filling. Quick bread and pound cakes are perfect for tossing in raw cranberries.
We recommend refrigerating cranberry pie as the crust typically contains eggs and dairy. You can leave your cranberry pie out at room temperature for up to 2 hours, after that wrap it up and store it in the fridge.
More Pie Recipes You’re Sure To Love:
- Mini Cherry Pies
- Homemade Peach Pie Filling
- Custard Pie
- Vegan Key Lime Pie
- Blueberry Pie Filling
- Blueberry Bars Recipe
Cranberry Pie Filling
Ingredients
- 4 cups fresh cranberries
- 1 ¼ cup white sugar
- 2 tablespoons apple juice or orange juice
- ½ tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch needs to be dissolved in a splash of water before adding
Instructions
- Heat a medium sized pot over low/medium heat on the stove. Add all the ingredients except the cornstarch. Stir to combine.
- Simmer for about 25 minutes or until the cranberries have burst and begun to reduce.
- Once cranberries have burst, combine the cornstarch with enough cold water to dissolve it, stir in the cornstarch mixture.
- If the mixture is very thick, remove from heat and set aside. If it is still liquidy, simmer an additional 5-10 minutes until thickened, remove from heat and set aside. Once mostly cooled, the filling should be the consistency of a thick jam.
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