Cranberry Crunch
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These cranberry crunch bars include sweet and tart cranberries with a buttery streusel-like crumble topping and base that make them the perfect addition to your Thanksgiving table this year.
Some recipes just get you talking about the old days, which is why we love them so much. Cranberry crunch is one of those recipes that gets my mother talking about her childhood. The school lunch ladies often made this around the holidays and she loved it so much that one of them gave her the recipe for it, which has led us to enjoy it for the past couple of generations. Nothing like an heirloom recipe to bring memories back to life, especially around the holidays.
You only need 5 ingredients to make this old-fashioned cranberry crunch recipe: cranberry sauce, flour, oats, butter, and brown sugar. All we’re going to do is combine our dry ingredients (flour, oats, and sugar) in a mixing bowl and then cut in the butter to make it deliciously crumbly. Then we press half of this into the bottom of our baking dish before adding all the cranberry sauce and then the remaining crumble topping.
Then you have to patiently wait for it to bake before grabbing a bowl and serving your cranberry crunch bar with a big dollop of whipped cream or vanilla ice cream. I’ve also been known to enjoy one for breakfast, too. If you’re a fan of the humble crumble, you will love cranberry crunch. The combination of tart yet sweet cranberries with the buttery streusel-like crumble topping will be the perfect addition to your holiday table this year.
Recipe Ingredients
- Whole berry cranberry sauce
- Old-fashioned oats
- Flour
- Dark or light brown sugar
- Butter
How To Make Cranberry Crunch
Place your flour, oats, and brown sugar in a large bowl.
Stir them up.
Add your butter and cut that in with a long-tined fork or pastry cutter.
It will look like this.
Now spray a pie plate or 8×8 baking dish with cooking spray.
You can see some of these pretty dishes by fellow food blogger, Ree Drummond here.
Press half of your crumble mixture into the bottom of the pie plate to form the crust for the cranberry crunch.
Top that with the entire can of cranberry sauce.
Then take that same spoon and spread it around a bit.
Sprinkle the remaining topping over the cranberry sauce.
Bake cranberry crunch at 350, uncovered, for 45 minutes to one hour, or until bubbly and golden brown.
Cranberry crunch is excellent served with whipped cream or ice cream but you can also serve it as a side dish. Enjoy!
Storage
- Store leftover cranberry crunch in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days or in the fridge for up to 7 days. You can serve it at room temperature, cold, or reheated either in the oven or the microwave. This is a great recipe to make ahead of time this Thanksgiving.
- You can also freeze leftovers for up to 3 months. Thaw at room temperature before serving.
Recipe Notes
- I use old-fashioned rolled oats but quick oats will work just as well if that is what you have on hand.
- As for brown sugar, I’m using dark because it is my very favorite, but if you have light or prefer light, knock yourself out!
- I don’t recommend using frozen or fresh cranberries for this particular cranberry crunch recipe, as the cranberry sauce has added sweetness, which is exactly what we want.
- If you like, you can add 1/2 cup of chopped walnuts or chopped pecans to the crumble mix for added flavor and texture.
- Another option is to make cranberry apple crunch. Spread a cup or so of chopped apples over the cranberry sauce before adding the topping.
- Another way to add flavor is to add some spices to the topping. I’d recommend 1 teaspoon of ground cinnamon and 1/4 teaspoon of ground nutmeg.
Check out these other tasty cranberry treats:
Pumpkin Cranberry Bread With Caramel Glaze
Chewy Oatmeal Cranberry Cookie Recipe
Upside Down Cranberry Cinnamon Rolls
Ingredients
- 1 cup old-fashioned oats
- 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 16-ounce can whole berry cranberry sauce
- 1 cup light or dark brown sugar
- 1/2 cup butter or margarine
Instructions
- Mix the oats, flour, and brown sugar together in a large bowl. Cut in the butter using a long-tined fork or pastry cutter.1 cup old-fashioned oats, 1/2 cup all-purpose flour, 1 cup light or dark brown sugar, 1/2 cup butter or margarine
- Press 1/2 of the crumble mixture into the bottom of a greased 8x8 baking dish.
- Spread cranberry sauce over the crust before topping it with the remaining crumbs.1 16-ounce can whole berry cranberry sauce
- Bake at 350 for 45 minutes to 1 hour or until lightly brown. Excellent served with whipped cream or ice cream.
Nutrition
Don’t set yourself so firmly on remembering Thanksgiving’s past that you forget to put your heart into this one.
This is certainly one of your most beatiful post for me. It specially hits me today because my mother, 86 yo, is not feeling so well. You have an art, Lady, and I am so happy to have found your blog. Thanks
Oh my goodness Lourdes, thank you. Wow, just..thank you 🙂
Amen! to every word you said, such and EXCELLENT reminder! thank you and HAPPY THANKSGIVING!
Happy Thanksgiving to you too Julie!!! Thank YOU!
Gratefully,
Christy
Christy – I couldn’t agree with your quote more. I too have a room full of Thanksgiving memories past as I set about making Thanksgiving dinner and at some point in the day each year it overwhelms me. I grew up with so many family traditions and large family gatherings with GREAT grandparents. Once I started my own family my extended family had dwindled and we had moved miles and miles away from what was left and I worried that my children wouldn’t have those same sweet memories of growing up with a large family.
Sorry, somehow that sent before I was finished.
Today I have three children (two are grown), a daughter in law, a son in law and two sweet grandbabies. We made our own large family and as I plan for this years Thanksgiving I smile at how that all worked out. I think my great grandparents are smiling with me as I make time tested recipes along with those of my own. I hope some day that my grandbabies and children will remember our life together fondly and take a little piece of me and the generations before me with them into their own holidays.
Aimee, you sound so much like me! I have spent a great deal of time fretting over my kids not having the big family memories like I had, especially when it comes to grandparents. I reckon I’m just making my own large family, too! I just keep pulling in friends and adopting folks 🙂
I know your grandkids and great grandkids will look back on their time with you as the inspiration to continue on the traditions you have started!
Gratefully,
Christy
“Precious memories, how they linger, how they ever flood my soul” are words to a song that is often sung at church. Yes, memories of those gone on are to be celebrated and appreciated. It’s often with sweet tears that we remember loved ones and we must remember that they would not want our memories of them to be ones of sadness and grief. Thank you Christy for your timely reminder. God bless you and your family as you make precious memories together. I, too, will read this to our family on Thanksgiving Day. We all love you and appreciate your concern for us.
Lynda, you honor and humble me with your kindness. Thank you so much
Gratefully,
Christy
I am glad for this recipe, there is another one for cranberrys that cost almost $20 and it makes just a little more than this. Thanks so much and Happy Thanksgiving to all. Makes me think of You’ve Got Mail where Tom Hanks talks Rose the cashier into saying Happy Thanksgiving. Have a great day y’all!
you too Michelle!! Wow, $20? ouch! lol
Gratefully,
Christy
P.S. Someone posted on my Facebook wall today that a store online was selling buttermilk pies for $50! ~blinks~ I think I’ll just make one for two or three, lol
Christy- this post is just what I needed to hear. I lost my mom suddenly on October 11th and have never known such heartache. We’ve all been talking about how sad the holidays will be without her instead of thanking God for all of the family that will be together with memories of such an amazing lady. I’m going to read this before our Thanksgiving meal… thank you so much for these thoughtful, touching, healing words. Happy holidays!
Oh Jan, my heart is with you. I know it will be hard, particularly this year, but your mother would be so touched by you carrying on the torch. She’ll be with you and her love will be all around that table this year.
Love you
Christy
Thanks for reminding me that every holiday is special, Christy. I haven’t been looking forward to Thanksgiving since we honored my grandfather’s passing last Thursday. It just didn’t feel like it would be right without him there telling his stories of working for the TVA and the time he spent in Korea during the war. He was always out looking for adventure and I will try to keep that in my heart instead of being sad for myself.
Happy Thanksgiving to you and your wonderful family Christy!
Your grandaddy sounds a lot like mine, we had the Korea stories (did he ever talk about how bitter cold it was?) and then his stories of working at Thiokol.
I know our Grandaddys will be around our table in spirit, probably grinning from ear to ear and hoping we pile up big old plates!