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Orange Cranberry Green Bean Recipe

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Cranberry Orange Glazed Green Beans are tossed in a sweet and tangy glaze made of Dijon mustard and orange marmalade, then bejeweled with dried cranberries. This easy side dish has just a few ingredients and is ready in about 20 minutes. It is fast enough to serve with a busy weeknight dinner. But it’s also a fresh alternative to the traditional Thanksgiving green bean recipe to lighten up your holiday meal. 

Cranberry Orange Glazed Green Beans Recipe image with title

What happens when you have been running extremely boring errands with an extremely cranky child all day?

Well, in a moment of hangry meltdowns (might have been me, might have been the small child, might have been both of us), you end up at a diner fighting with the aforementioned small child about whether he wants bacon or sausage with his pancakes. And to top it all off, you make the mistake of ordering short ribs. At a diner. Yeah, that was several life lessons all rolled into one stressful dinner experience.

Then you have epic dinner remorse because you come home and the aromas in your house remind you that you had put a BBQ Turkey Breast in the Crockpot that morning.  And in less time than it took the diner to make the kid’s pancakes, you could have whipped up this easy and healthy green bean recipe.

Learn from my mistakes, people. 

Have a few simple ingredients in your fridge and pantry at all times so you can throw together something simple like this.

The orange marmalade adds a bit of sweetness to the beans, with some tart flavor from the dried cranberries. A wee bit of dijon mustard pulls it all together and balances it out with a little zing. Perfect fall flavors for a perfect vegetable side dish.

Better than the diner short ribs.

Easy green beans recipe with dried cranberries and orange glaze in a yellow serving dish

Orange Glazed Green Beans with Dried Cranberries

This easy fresh green bean recipe comes together in mere minutes. The most time-consuming part is popping the ends off of the green beans. So to really save time, buy the ones that are already prepped.

Once you’ve got your beans cooked, it literally takes about two minutes to add the other ingredients and make it all glazy good. It’s the perfect vegetable side dish for any occasion.

My family polished off this batch of beans, so if you’re making it for a big holiday meal, I’d highly suggest doubling or tripling it.

Here is a brief overview so you can see just how easy it is to make. Scroll down to the printable recipe card for the full quantities and details.
But don’t skip my PRO TIPS below!

Ingredients

There are only five main ingredients:

  • Green beans – I use fresh green beans and steam them in a pot. But you can also use one of those microwave steamer bags of fresh beans or even frozen ones.
  • Fresh sage – you can also use dried, you’ll just use less than the fresh herbs.
  • Orange marmalade
  • Dijon mustard
  • Dried cranberries

Plus olive oil, salt, and pepper.

BRIANNE RECOMMENDS:

A couple of kitchen gadgets will make this recipe extra easy:

STEAMER BASKET – I can’t live without my steamer basket. I have so many pots and pans, so I don’t need another special one with a steamer insert. Since this is collapsible, it works in any size pot or pan. For a dish like this, I will use it in my deep skillet, steam the beans, drain the water, and saute them right in the same pan. If I need to steam a bunch of broccoli or cauliflower, I’ll use a larger pot. I do tend to just use a little cheap version, but I am tempted to get this one with the better grip on the handle.

TONGS –  I love my tongs and use them daily. You can use them to get the hot steamer basket out of the pot, grab any stray green beans, and to toss the beans in the glaze. Since they have the silicone tip, they won’t scratch your pots and pans.

Orange Green Beans with Dried Cranberries in a serving dish

Directions overview – scroll to the recipe card for the full set of instructions

  1. Cook green beans to desired tenderness.
  2. Heat olive oil in a pan.
  3. Saute green beans and sage.
  4. Stir in orange marmalade, Dijon mustard, dried cranberries, salt, and pepper.
Step By Step Process Shots of how to make Cranberry Orange Green Beans

Brianne’s pro recipe tips

Cooking the green beans

  • My family likes soft green beans, but I know many people like them more crisp-tender. Therefore, cook them to your preference.
  • I used fresh green beans and steamed them in a pot, but you can use one of those steamer bags, or even frozen beans.
  • You could also make Instant Pot green beans, then toss them in a pan with the glaze ingredients. In fact, I’d suspect you could just switch your Instant Pot to “Saute” mode and finish off making them right in there.

Make it a meal

You can definitely add this easy green bean recipe to a weeknight dinner since they come together super fast and easy. But it is also a refreshing addition to Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner and they are also lovely for a Sunday meal.

You can easily double or triple this recipe if you are serving it at a large family meal.

Weeknight dinner

Sunday supper

Thanksgiving feast

Christmas menu

Holiday ham

Glazed Fresh Green Beans in a yellow serving dish

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More recipes to make with dried cranberries

More fresh green bean recipes

Cranberry Orange Glazed Green Beans Recipe
Print Recipe
5 from 5 votes

Cranberry Orange Glazed Green Beans

Sweet and tart with a little zing, and perfectly easy for a holiday meal or weeknight supper.
Prep Time5 mins
Cook Time15 mins
Total Time20 mins
Course: Side Dish, Vegetable
Cuisine: American
Keyword: orange glazed green beans
Servings: 4
Calories: 92kcal
Author: Brianne @ Cupcakes & Kale Chips

Ingredients

  • 1 pound fresh green beans, ends snipped off
  • 1 teaspoon olive oil
  • 1 Tablespoon minced fresh sage or 1 teaspoon dried sage
  • 2 Tablespoons orange marmalade
  • 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
  • 1/4 cup dried cranberries
  • 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
  • a few grinds of black pepper

Instructions

  • Steam green beans to desired doneness (or cook according to package directions if using fresh green beans in a microwave bag).
  • Heat olive oil in a saucepan over medium heat.
  • Add green beans and sage, and saute for a couple of minutes to let them brown slightly.
  • Sitr in the marmalade, mustard, and cranberries, and season with salt and pepper.
  • Cook for another minute or two until the glaze thickens and coats the green beans.

Notes

This recipe is easily doubled or tripled to serve more people.
Tried this recipe?Mention @cupcakekalechip or tag #cupcakesandkalechips!

Nutrition

Calories: 92kcal | Carbohydrates: 20g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 1g | Sodium: 317mg | Potassium: 239mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 14g | Vitamin A: 785IU | Vitamin C: 14.4mg | Calcium: 46mg | Iron: 1.2mg

Originally published on Nov 2, 2014

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Comments

  2. Heather says

    Hi! Looks delicious! Do you blanch the beans after they are done cooking and then return them to the pan for the sauce?

    Reply

    • Brianne Cupcakes & Kale Chips says

      Hi Heather,

      I don’t blanch the green beans, but that’s because my family prefers them to be on the softer side. However, you can definitely blanch them after cooking to keep them tender-crisp.

      Reply

    • Brianne Cupcakes & Kale Chips says

      Hi Sharon,
      Yes, you can absolutely make this ahead! I usually reheat it in a skillet, but if you cover the baking dish with foil, it should reheat well at 350 F. I would think 20-25 minutes should warm it through.

      Reply

    • Brianne Cupcakes & Kale Chips says

      Lynn, it’s difficult to say how much volume-wise, because green beans vary in size. However, the recipe calls for a pound of green beans and 1/4 cup of dried cranberries, so I suggest that if you need to be specific with portion size that you use a kitchen scale and weigh out 5 oz per portion.

      Reply

    • Brianne Cupcakes & Kale Chips says

      Kate, a pound of green beans (which is what the recipe calls for) will typically serve 4 adults as a side dish. Hope this helps!

      Reply

  11. Krissy Allori {self proclaimed foodie} says

    Hey there! Wanted to let you know that I’m featuring your recipe as one of my favorite’s on this week’s Wednesday’s Whatsits. The new post will go live Tuesday at 8pm PST. I hope you continue to submit – your food looks fantastic! -Krissy

    Reply

  12. Emily says

    That look amazing!! I love that it’s a healthier version. YUMMY!!! thanks for linking up to the Create LInk Inspire party. You are being featured today on Nap-Time Creations in some great fall food!! Check it out! Emily

    Reply

  15. Lori Yates says

    “No short ribs at a diner.” I’ve comitted that to memory, just now. Sorry you had such a rough day, but at least it was a learning experience for you readers, right? 😉

    I know it sounds crazy, but what kind of green beans to make is always my biggest dilemma for Thanksgiving. So many options. Just printed this to add it to the pile of options.

    Reply

    • Brianne @ Cupcakes & Kale Chips says

      Haha, yeah, the short ribs were not good! My family always wants the traditional casserole, but I think I have them convined to try something new this year. But at least the blog lets me experiment even when they want to stick with the usual.

      Reply

  18. Laura Dembowski says

    I almost always eat at home, even when I’m running late and in a hurry. Usually it’s a good decision, but I totally understand how you felt. These green beans look amazing! Such a fab side dish!

    Reply

  19. Linda | Brunch with Joy says

    What a rough day for you, Brianne. I bet it must be one exhausting day. Thanks for sharing this cranberry orange glazed green beans, definitely looks delicious and special for the holidays.

    Reply

  21. Shaina says

    The combination of cranberry and orange totally makes me think of the holidays. I don’t like green beans unless they’ve got some kind of awesome flavor going on, and these totally do!

    Reply

  22. Sarah | Curious Cuisiniere says

    I love the color contrast in this dish! I think I’ll be bringing this to a holiday meal this year!

    Reply

  23. Liz says

    Your doctored up green beans look terrific! I love the addition of dried cranberries. Sorry for the lackluster meal at the dinner…but at least dinner was ready for the next day 🙂

    Reply

  25. Stacy Rushton says

    The marmalade is a brilliant idea, Brianne! I love your flavor combination here. Pinning this one on my Recipes to Try board!

    Reply

    • Brianne @ Cupcakes & Kale Chips says

      Thanks Stacy. I’ve had it in my fridge from another recipe, and it was just calling my name!

      Reply

  27. Chris Baccus says

    We’ve all had those days. Thanks for the kitchen and some mad skills for adding something colorful and joyous to dinner.

    Reply

  29. Renee - Kudos Kitchen says

    What a day you had. Not one you want to repeat, I’ll bet.
    That said, your green beans look and sound wonderful and I’m sure will be a nice compliment to your crock pot turkey. LOL

    Reply

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