Serve these simple sugared cranberries in a bowl for snacking, as part of a sophisticated holiday cheese tray or to top an appetizer or dessert!
What You’ll Love This Recipe
- Delicious: Candied cranberries are sweet and sour and the cranberry pops under the pressure of a bite and then the sweetness kicks in.
- Easy: 4-ingredients and just 10 minutes to prepare make this recipe super simple.
- Holiday Festive: These are the perfect finish as a cocktail garnish, decorating, dessert topping, cheese boards, Christmas snacks and much more.
- Fun For Kids: This is a family-friendly recipe that kids will have fun doing and of course taste testing.
- Gift Giving: Sugared cranberries are a perfect holiday gift and the simple syrup you make out of this recipe can also double as a gift!
Sugared Cranberries Ingredients
When you turn these fresh cranberries into sugared cranberries you’ll wonder why you never enjoyed them this way before! All you need to make this pretty sweet treat is fresh cranberries, sugar, superfine sugar and water. Four ingredients, one of which is water? Heck, yeah.
- Fresh Cranberries – I used fresh cranberries; they are super easy to pick up around the holiday season! I would not use frozen cranberries.
- Water – Just plain old water straight from the tap – any temperature.
- Sugar – Granulated white sugar is a must, we aren’t going to achieve that showstopper frosted look with any other kind.
- Fine Sugar (caster sugar): Superfine sugar is for dusting the top of any number of desserts that need a little shiny something. If you don’t want to purchase it, just run regular sugar through your Vitamix or food processor. I prefer the superfine sugar that I use but homemade will do the job just fine.
(Scroll down to the bottom for the printable recipe card with exact measurements and recipe instructions.)
How to Make Sugared Cranberries
Super simple to whip up, but plan ahead because the candied cranberries need to set undisturbed at room temperature for about an hour.
- Heat the Sugar Syrup (aka Simple Syrup): Heat the water and stir until the sugar dissolves. Now you’ve made simple syrup!
- Mix Cranberries: Add the cranberries until they are coated. Now you’ve made cranberry simple syrup!
- Dry the Cranberries: In either a colander or wire rack let the cranberries dry for at least one hour. For extra sugary cranberries place the cranberries with the sugar syrup in the refrigerator overnight before drying. Save the simple syrup! (see below for fun uses)
- Sprinkle and Roll: Sprinkle the cranberries with superfine sugar then roll them around until they’re covered.
Tips
- Save the Cranberry Simple Syrup: The syrup can be used for cocktails, to sweeten iced tea or lemonade, moisten cakes, over pancakes, yogurt or oatmeal and added to sparkling water. You can even make a gift out of it!
- Let the Cranberries Dry: The most crucial step to evenly coated, pretty cranberries is to allow the cranberries to drain really well, otherwise the sugar will clump too much.
- Make More Than You Need: There are so many ways to serve these candied cranberries. See below for ideas.
Variations
- Try Other Berries: You can easily substitute other berries. Blueberries, strawberries and blackberries all work.
- Orange: Add orange peel and a bit of orange juice to the simple syrup. You can also add orange zest to the sugar.
- Alcohol Sugared Cranberries: Add to the water a few teaspoons of orange liqueur such as Cointreau or Grand Marnier.
- Vanilla Bean: Add vanilla bean pulp in with the simple syrup.
- Rosemary: Rosemary in cranberry cocktails is delicious and the same goes for adding a sprig of rosemary in with the syrup while dissolving the sugar.
What to do With Sugared Cranberries
Sugared Cranberries can be served in so many ways you’ll want to make every year!
- Snacks: Candied cranberries are just as perfect as an afternoon snack or in a bowl at a holiday party.
- Sugared Cranberries Cocktails: These festive treats pair well with many holiday cocktails such as Christmas Sangria, Winter Punch, Poinsettia Drink (Cranberry Champagne Cocktail) or as a garnish on a stainless steel toothpick for many cocktails.
- Dessert Garnish: Garnish Cranberry Christmas Cake, gingerbread cupcakes, pumpkin, cranberry or apple pie with these berries.
- Side and Main Dish Decoration: Decorate over or around cranberry sauce, sweet potatoes, holiday ham or prime rib or even a Thanksgiving turkey.
- Charcuterie Board: Scatter them around a cheese board for fall or wintery touch.
- Cheese Topping: Use them to cheese topper such as a Baked Brie with Balsamic Roasted Cranberries.
- Vanilla Ice Cream: Top your ice cream off with them.
How to Store Sugared Cranberries
These treats are perfect for making ahead and saving leftovers! Sugared cranberries can be stored in an airtight container in a refrigerator or a cool dry place for up to 1 week.
Sugared Cranberries
Yield:
12 (makes 3 cups)
Prep Time:
5 minutes
Cook Time:
5 minutes
Additional Time:
2 hours
Total Time:
2 hours 10 minutes
Sugared Cranberries are such an easy treat for the holidays. They're addictive and so delicious!
Ingredients
- 1 12 ounce package fresh cranberries, about 3 cups
- 2 cups water
- 2 cups sugar
- 3/4 cup superfine sugar
Instructions
- Heat water and regular sugar over low heat until sugar is dissolved, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and allow to cool. Add cranberries and stir until all are coated.
- Drain cranberries in a colander or use a slotted spoon and transfer to a wire rack. Allow to dry for at least 1 hour.
- Spread cranberries on a sheet pan and sprinkle and roll with superfine sugar. Shake pan until all cranberries are thoroughly coated. Allow to sit for another hour until sugar is set and they are dry but sticky.
Notes
For extra sugary cranberries place the cranberries with the sugar syrup in the refrigerator overnight (or at least 6 hours) before proceeding to step 2.
The most crucial step to evenly coated, pretty cranberries is to allow the cranberries to drain really well, otherwise the sugar will clump too much.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 12 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 189Total Fat: 0gSaturated Fat: 0gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 0gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 3mgCarbohydrates: 49gFiber: 1gSugar: 47gProtein: 0g
This data was provided and calculated by Nutritionix.
Kristy Bernardo is the recipe creator behind The Wicked Noodle. She's a five-time cookbook author, has taught cooking classes to both kids and adults, and has been creating recipes for nationwide brands since 2009. She learned most of her cooking skills from her mom and grandmother, then honed those skills at boot camp at the Culinary Institute of America.
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