Easy Orange Sauce

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Orange sauce is sweet, tangy, and a perfect topping for waffles and pancakes. I also love it drizzled over desserts like cake and ice cream. Make it with orange juice or add Grand Marnier for a more grown-up version.

Orange Sauce poured over a waffle

What Is Orange Sauce Made Of?

Orange juice and sugar in a pot

The most basic orange sauce is made with sugar and orange juice.

They are heated so that the sugar melts and the orange juice reduces (some of the liquid evaporates) and the flavor intensifies.

How to Thicken Orange Sauce

Orange sauce over ice cream

If you just cook down the orange juice with sugar, you’ll end up with a thin orange syrup. This is absolutely delicious and sometimes I like to use it as is! Sometimes, especially on ice cream, it’s nice to have a thicker orange sauce.

To thicken the sauce a little, add a pat of butter. This also adds a richer buttery flavor to the sauce!

To thicken the sauce to more of a honey consistency, whisk together a half teaspoon of corn starch with a teaspoon of orange juice and add it to the boiling liquid. Whisk it into the liquid for about a minute. The sauce will start to thicken and it will continue to thicken as it cools.

Adding cornstarch slurry to boiling orange sauce

What is Grand Marnier?

Image from Wikipedia

Grand Marnier is an orange-flavored cognac-based liqueur.

The name is synonymous with orange liqueur – just as some people use the word Coke to mean soda.

I like to use a lot of Grand Marnier in my orange sauce as I love the boozy orange flavor! If you are making the sauce for children, you may want to skip the Grand Marnier and use just orange juice.

Where to Use Orange Sauce

Orange sauce over ice cream with a spoon

Here are some of my favorite ways to use orange sauce:

  • Poured over Belgian waffles
  • Drizzled on cinnamon rolls instead of the standard glaze
  • On top of pancakes, like these perfect pancakes from The Stay at Home Chef
  • Over English muffins or crumpets
  • In any oatmeal
  • Over any ice cream (I show vanilla here, but it’s so good on chocolate as well!)
  • Drizzled over cupcakes frosted with vanilla frosting or chocolate frosting
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Orange Sauce poured over a waffle
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5 from 2 votes

Orange Sauce

Orange sauce is sweet, tangy, and a perfect topping for waffles, pancakes, ice cream, and desserts. Try it with Grand Marnier for a more grown-up version!
Course Breakfast
Cuisine American
Prep Time 3 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Total Time 18 minutes
Servings 6 servings
Calories 126kcal
Author Stefani

Ingredients

  • 1/4 cup orange juice
  • 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
  • 1/2 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/3 cup Grand Marnier optionally, replace with more orange juice
  • 1/2 teaspoon cornstarch

Instructions

  • Set aside one teaspoon of orange juice in a small bowl.
  • In a small saucepan on medium heat, melt butter. 
  • Whisk in remaining orange juice, sugar, and Grand Marnier.
  • Bring mixture to a low boil and cook for ten minutes to reduce the liquid.
  • Whisk the cornstarch into the previously set aside orange juice until it yields a uniform slurry, then add to the mixture. Continue to whisk for about one minute.
  • Remove from heat and let cool to thicken.

Notes

If you are making the sauce for children, you may want to skip the Grand Marnier and use just orange juice.
You can leave off the butter and cornstarch slurry to make an orange syrup instead of an orange sauce.

Nutrition

Calories: 126kcal | Carbohydrates: 22g | Fat: 1g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 5mg | Sodium: 1mg | Potassium: 20mg | Sugar: 21g | Vitamin A: 80IU | Vitamin C: 5.2mg
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