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Bright, zippy, and bursting with festive flavor, this cranberry salsa is the ultimate holiday appetizer. Sweet-tart cranberries meet a hint of heat for a dip that’s as beautiful as it is delicious—perfect with cream cheese, crackers, or a pile of chips!

This cranberry salsa is the perfect salsa recipe for the holidays. I have a love for salsa, it’s my go to snack or appetizer. The classic salsa recipe is good all year round. Pineapple salsa makes me think of summer. And this cranberry salsa is my go to for winter and the holiday season.

Cranberry Salsa served on a plate over cream cheese with crackers.

A Zippy Cranberry Salsa for All Your Holiday Snacking

Is there anything better than a recipe that’s equal parts festive, easy, and completely unexpected? Enter cranberry salsa. A bright, zippy mix of fresh cranberries, cilantro, lime, and a little jalapeño kick.

The first time I brought this to a holiday party, it stole the show—not the main dish, not the desserts—this salsa. Tangy, a little sweet, and just the right amount of heat, it’s the perfect pop of color on the table.

Spoon it over cream cheese with crackers, serve it with chips, or even dollop it onto your turkey leftovers (trust me on this one). It’s become one of those recipes I make every year without fail—because it’s not really the holidays until cranberry salsa makes an appearance.

Why You Will Love This Cranberry Salsa

Quick and Easy: this salsa comes together in minutes using a food processor. Simply pulse the ingredients together, cover and chill.
Sweet & Spicy: the balanced flavoring of sweet, tart cranberries with the sweet pear and sugar blend perfectly with the heat of the jalapeño and fresh pop of lime juice.
Christmas coloring: this appetizer naturally has a beautiful coloring that just screams Christmastime!

Ingredients Needed

Cranberries: use fresh or frozen cranberries. The frozen berries will need to be thawed before being used.
Pear: this is added for some extra sweetness to help balance the tart cranberries. This can be swapped out with an apple.
Sugar: cranberries are exceptionally tart, the sugar helps to balance the flavorings.
Jalapeno: prepare by slicing in half, you can remove the membranes and seeds to reduce the heat, or you can leave it all together and give a rough chop before adding to the food processor.
Green onion: slice off the very end, and give a rough chop before adding to the processor.
Cilantro: grab a handful of cilantro and add in.

How To Make Cranberry Salsa

Find the complete recipe card below with measurements and full instructions.

Jalapeno, green onion, cilantro, with cranberries in a food processor.

Add the cranberries to the processor or blender, mix briefly to break up the berries.
Add the jalapeno, green onion and cilantro to the processor and continue to pulse until the ingredients are blended to desired consistency.

Adding blended pear and sugar to cranberry salsa.

Remove the salsa to a medium size bowl. Stir in sugar. Blend the pear, and add to the salsa. I process them separately so that I can control the consistency of the pear.

Cover and store in the refrigerator. Chill for at least 4 hours, overnight is best. You can see in the images below how much the cranberries soften during this time.

Cranberry salsa before being chilled and letting to sit, and then after chilling overnight.

Expert Tips

Blended Pear: I blend this separately because I want it to be very blended, almost to the point of being mushy, like apple sauce.
Chill time: it is important to let the salsa chill in the refrigerator before serving to allow the sugar to soften the cranberries, and blend all of the flavors together.

Storage Information

Refrigerate: Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4-5 days.

The flavors deepen over time, so it might taste even better the next day!

Freeze: For longer storage, freeze the salsa for up to 2 months.

Thaw overnight in the fridge and stir well before serving.

Tip: Always give the salsa a quick stir before serving to redistribute the flavors.

Cranberry salsa served over cream cheese with crackers.

More Christmas Appetizer Recipes

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Cranberry Salsa

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Prep: 5

Cook: 0

Chilling Time: 4

Total: 4 5

Servings:

Author: Serene

Ingredients

▢ 12 ounces cranberries fresh
▢ ⅓ cup cilantro fresh
▢ 1 jalapeno roughly chopped (membranes and seeds removed if desired- this will reduce the heat)
▢ 4 green onions roughly chopped
▢ ½ teaspoon lime juice fresh
▢ ¼ teaspoon salt
▢ ⅓ cup sugar
▢ ½ Bartlett pear
▢ 1 8 ounce block cream cheese

Instructions

Rinse and dry the cranberries, remove all that are mushy or bruised.
Add cranberries to a food processor and pulse briefly, just to chop them up.
Add in the cilantro, jalapeño, green onion, squeeze of lime juice, and salt. Pulse in the processor or blender just to chop up all of the ingredients. Do not blend to a puree.
Remove from the processor and spoon into a medium size mixing bowl. Stir in the sugar.
Process the pear to a consistency of applesauce, pour into the cranberry salsa. Stir to combine.
Cover and chill in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours. Best if chilled overnight.
Serve over cream cheese, brie cheese or with crackers or chips.

Notes

Substitutions: can substitute the pear for an apple or unsweetened applesauce if preferred.

Storage: salsa can be kept covered in a refrigerator for up to 5 days.

Nutrition

Serving: 1 | Calories: 138kcal | Carbohydrates: 35g | Sodium: 82mg | Fiber: 2g

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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