Instant Pot Nantucket Cranberry Pie – An Easy Holiday Dessert
This year, make your traditional holiday Nantucket Cranberry pie in the Instant Pot!

Instant Pot Nantucket cranberry pie will transform your holiday dinner preparations, thanks to the ease of this recipe!
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I know, it seems too good to be true that you can make any kind of desserts in your Instant Pot.
But the fact is, even though the pressure cooker creates a moist environment, instead of a dry environment like your oven produces, there are some desserts that work extremely well in the Instant Pot!
I’ve made countless Instant Pot cake recipes, plus Instant Pot pumpkin cheesecake, Instant Pot pecan pie, Instant Pot pecan pie cheesecake bites, and now this super delicious Instant Pot Nantucket cranberry pie!
Trust me when I say that it’s so good, it’s definitely going on my list of Instant Pot Thanksgiving recipes and Christmas recipes!
Looking for an oven-baked version? Check out my traditional Nantucket cranberry pie recipe!

Making Nantucket Cranberry Pie in the Instant Pot
I am a sucker for all things cranberry.
Whether it’s cranberry sauce, cranberry orange muffins, cream cheese cranberry bread, cranberry banana bread, cranberry cream cheese muffins, or cranberry pistachio bread, I could eat my weight in them.
I even have a recipe for a cranberry streusel pie, which uses a traditional pastry crust and a cranberry filling. It’s delicious!
But when I tell you this Nantucket cranberry pie takes the cake, I mean it.
It isn’t a pie in the traditional sense, as there’s no pie crust and pie filling. It’s actually more of a cranberry cake.

I will say that making this in the Instant Pot will yield a slightly denser result than if you were baking it in the oven, but it is simply divine.
It’s sort of like a sweet, soft shortbread or chess pie type consistency, dotted with tart cranberries and crunchy pecans.
How to Make Cranberry Pie in Your Pressure Cooker
Now, I get it…you may be wondering, “Why would I want to make a pie in my Instant Pot?”
Well, for starters, Nantucket cranberry pie is a holiday staple in many homes. But I know first-hand that one of the most stressful aspects of cooking a holiday dinner is juggling all of the prep.
Using the Instant Pot to free up your oven for something else is a holiday game-changer! It makes it a lot easier to get things cooked and prepped when you can choose a few dishes to “set it and forget it.”
Also, a lot of people may not have an oven–such as people who live in RVs or efficiency apartments but still want a taste of nostalgia for the holidays.
Plus, it’s just so easy!

Ingredients You’ll Need:
It doesn’t take much to make this simple pie–most of these ingredients are probably items you already have on hand!
- Whole fresh cranberries
- Chopped pecans or walnuts
- Granulated sugar
- Eggs
- Unsalted butter
- Vanilla extract
- Almond extract
- All-purpose flour
- Salt
How to Make It:
(Full printable recipe is available below)
Prep the cranberries and nuts. First, you’ll toss the cranberries, nuts, and a bit of sugar in a greased cheesecake pan that fits in your Instant Pot.

Prepare the batter. Next, you’ll mix together some sugar, melted butter, egg, egg yolk, vanilla extract and almond extract until it’s nice and smooth.
Then, add in some flour and salt, mixing just until combined.

You should end up with a thick, fairly stiff batter.

Top the cranberries. Spoon the batter over the cranberries and nuts, then spread it out.

Prepare for cooking. Last, you’ll prepare the pan by tightly covering the top with a paper towel and aluminum foil. This will help prevent any condensation from collecting on the top of your pie.
Then it’s ready to cook–pour water into the Instant Pot and use a foil sling to lower the pan onto the trivet.

Pressure cook. You’ll cook it at high pressure for 35 minutes.
Cool. It’s important to note that the pie needs to cool before slicing, otherwise the center will be pretty gooey. So give it plenty of time to cool!

I like to cool mine at room temperature for a bit, then pop it in the fridge for a couple of hours, which allows it to solidify even more.
But you can skip the fridge if you don’t want it chilled.
You can sprinkle a bit of sugar on top and pop it under the broiler if you want, but I actually prefer to serve the slices inverted, soft of like an updside-down-cake!
Why not display that beautiful cranberry pecan mixture on top, instead of hidden at the bottom!
Just look at how pretty these slices are!

Recommended Equipment:
- 7-inch Cheesecake Pan
- Instant Pot (I have the DUO60, which I love) or other electric pressure cooker
Instant Pot Nantucket Cranberry Pie

The holiday tradition of a Nantucket Cranberry Pie gets a pressure cooker makeover in this easy recipe!
Ingredients
- 1-1.5 cups whole fresh cranberries (use more or less, depending on how full of cranberries you want the pie to be)
- 1/3 cup chopped pecans or walnuts
- 3/4 cup + 2 TBSP granulated sugar, divided
- 1 egg + 1 egg yolk
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/4 tsp almond extract
- 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/4 tsp salt
- Optional: Additional sugar for sprinkling on top
Instructions
- Grease a 7-inch cheesecake pan. Add cranberries, pecans, and 2 TBSP sugar to the pan, stirring to coat.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment (or in a mixing bowl if mixing by hand), combine 3/4 cup sugar, egg and egg yolk, melted butter, vanilla extract, and almond extract, mixing until smooth.
- Add flour and salt to the mixing bowl, mixing just until combined.
- Spoon the thick batter over the cranberry mix. Smooth out with a spatula.
- Cover pan tightly with a paper towel and aluminum foil, being careful to make sure no ends of paper towel are sticking out from under the foil.
- Pour 1 cup of water into the insert pot of the Instant Pot and set the trivet in place.
- Use a foil sling to carefully lower the pan onto the trivet. Close the lid and set the vent to the sealed position. Select a cook time of 35 minutes at high pressure.
- After the cook time is complete, allow a natural release of pressure.
- Once the pressure has released and the valve has dropped, carefully remove the lid and use the foil sling to lift out the pan.
- Remove the coverings and allow the pie to cool slightly. If using a springform cheesecake pan, gently remove the side of the pan once it's cooled for about 15 minutes.
- If desired, you can sprinkle a couple of spoonfuls of sugar over the pie and pop into the oven under the broiler.
- Allow the pie to cool completely. Serve inverted to display the lovely cranberry pecan mixture! Top with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.
Notes
- You can control the amount of cranberries in this dessert, depending on how much tartness you desire. I used 1 cup, but you can increase to 1.5 cups if you prefer more.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
6Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 299Total Fat: 22gSaturated Fat: 10gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 10gCholesterol: 102mgSodium: 114mgCarbohydrates: 23gFiber: 3gSugar: 7gProtein: 4g
Nutrition information is automatically calculated and is not guaranteed for accuracy.
Don’t forget to save this recipe to your holiday board on Pinterest!

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