Sugared Cranberries

Learn how to make these sparkling and festive Sugared Cranberries. All you need are 3 ingredients; cranberries, sugar and water. So simple and so impressive!

Tis the season for all things sparkly! Don’t you just love it? And nothing’s prettier than these super simple and sinfully sweet sugared cranberries.

I have to admit that cranberries are not my favorite because of how tart they really are, but you know what? I can devour them no problem when they’re sugar coated like this. They’re sweet and tart, totally adorable and oh so festive.

Can’t you just picture it now – a beautiful cranberry sauce with these studding the top? Or maybe you’d prefer these sprinkled lovingly over top of your favorite holiday pie! I even sneak them into cocktails if I’m really feeling like wowing a crowd.

Sugar and cranberries are basically all you need to make these. First you have to make some simple syrup, which is really simple, equal parts water and sugar. I’m not here to make your holiday meal any more labor intensive than it already is!

Ingredients

• Water – Just plain old water straight from the tap – any temperature.
• Cranberries – I used fresh cranberries today, they are super easy to pick up around the holiday season!
• Sugar – Granulated white sugar is a must, we aren’t going to achieve that showstopper frosted look with any other kind.

Fresh Or Frozen?

This recipe has only been tested with fresh cranberries, so I would not use frozen cranberries.

How To Make Sugared Cranberries

1. Combine the sugar and water: In a medium saucepan, combine the water and 1/2 cup of the sugar and bring to a boil over medium heat until sugar is fully dissolved, about 3 minutes.
2. Allow the cranberries to cool: Stir in the cranberries and make sure each cranberry is well coated in the simple syrup. Using a slotted spoon, transfer cranberries to a wire rack and let them dry for at least an hour.
3. Finish: After an hour the cranberries should be dry but sticky. Working with a few cranberries at once, roll them in the remaining sugar until they are fully coated. Let them sit until and dry for another hour.

How To Serve

Well these tasty treats were made to be admired! And what better way to admire them than to serve them atop some of your drool worthy creations.

• Sprinkled over cranberry sauce
• Garnish for a cocktail
• The ‘cherry’ atop apple pie
• Use them as garnish around your turkey
• Scatter them around a charcuterie board for a bright festive touch
• Plunk them over some vanilla ice cream
• Or just eat them as is! It’s your house

Fun For The Whole Family

These would great to do with kids, yeah they’ll have sticky little hands and probably make a mess out of your kitchen, but they’ll have fun and you’ll love cleaning up after. Ahem!

Storing Leftovers

Store these in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week. These bad boys don’t mix well with freezing so try to make them at maximum a few days before you need them!

Craving More Cranberry? Try These Delicious Recipes:

• Cranberry Orange Bread
• Copycat Starbucks Cranberry Bliss Bars
• Cranberry Pork Roast
• Cranberry Meatballs
• Roast Turkey Breast With Saucy Cranberry Sauce
• Cranberry Orange Muffins

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4.37 from 57 votes

Sugared Cranberries

Prep 2 hours hours 30 minutes minutes

Cook 5 minutes minutes

Total 2 hours hours 35 minutes minutes

12

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Learn how to make these sparkling and festive Sugared Cranberries. All you need are 3 ingredients; cranberries, sugar and water. So simple and so impressive!

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US CustomaryMetric

Ingredients

• ▢ 1/2 cup water
• ▢ 2 cups sugar (divided)
• ▢ 12 ounce cranberries (fresh)

Before You Begin! If you make this, please leave a review and rating letting us know how you liked this recipe! This helps our business thrive & continue providing free recipes.

Instructions 

• In a medium saucepan, combine the water and 1/2 cup of the sugar and bring to a boil over medium heat until sugar is fully dissolved, about 3 minutes.
• Stir in the cranberries and make sure each cranberry is well coated in the simple syrup. Using a slotted spoon, transfer cranberries to a wire rack and let them dry for at least an hour.
• After an hour the cranberries should be dry but sticky. Working with a few cranberries at once, roll them in the remaining sugar until they are fully coated. Let them sit until and dry for another hour.

Equipment

• 3-Quart Saucepan with Lid
• Black Cooling Rack

Notes

1. This recipe has only been tested with fresh cranberries, so I would not use frozen cranberries.
2. Store these in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week.
3. Please keep in mind that nutritional information is a rough estimate and can vary greatly based on products used.

Nutrition Information

Calories: 142kcal (7%)Carbohydrates: 36g (12%)Sodium: 1mgPotassium: 24mg (1%)Fiber: 1g (4%)Sugar: 34g (38%)Vitamin A: 15IUVitamin C: 3.8mg (5%)Calcium: 2mgIron: 0.1mg (1%)

© Author Joanna Cismaru

Notice: Nutrition is auto-calculated for your convenience. Where relevant, we recommend using your own nutrition calculations.

Originally shared Nov 2014.