Easy Sugared Cranberries

Sugared Cranberries are perfect for fall and winter! As a seasonal blog, we love to add sugared cranberries to most Thanksgiving and Christmas dishes, cocktails, desserts and more. They are so festive and with only three ingredients, sugared cranberries are an easy way to dress up any tables setting, for parties, get togethers or a dinner in with family.

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Sugared Cranberries vs Fresh Cranberries. What’s the difference?

Cranberries are easy to use and look fantastic in and around desserts, dinners, cocktails and more. The difference between fresh and sugared cranberries is festive flair and delicious taste! Sugared cranberries add a sparkling elegant appearance to any dish. They also make a great snack in place or added to some nuts around the drink station!

They are also very easy to make!

What three ingredients to you need to make Sugared Cranberries?

• 1/2 cup water
• 1/2 cup sugar (for simple sugar)
• 3 cups fresh cranberries
• 1 cup sugar (for coating)

How to make Sugared Cranberries:

1. In a saucepan combine 1/2 cup water and 1/2 cup sugar. Bring to a boil, then let it simmer on low heat for about 3 minutes.
2. Stir in the washed and dried cranberries and mix to fully coat in the syrup. Once covered, remove the pot from the heat and stir 1 minute.
3. Remove cranberries with a slotted spoon and transfer to a parchment lined baking sheet to let cranberries dry out. Let them dry for about 1 hour.
4. Roll the sticky cranberries in the remaining 1 cup sugar to coat

Tips for making easy candied cranberries:

• Dry the cranberries…twice. Rinse and dry the cranberries before mixing them in the simple sugar solution. The syrup will stick better to dry cranberries and you will avoid adding excess water to the syrup.
• Dissolve sugar completely when heating the sugar and water, keep the saucepan on low heat for 3 minutes after it’s come to a boil. This allows the sugar to fully dissolve, forming a nice syrup for coating cranberries.
• Fully Coat the cranberries in the syrup, really stir them around and coat the entire surface of the cranberries.
• Remove Cranberries before they burst. You don’t want them to release their juices or soften.

Storing candied cranberries:

Store cranberries covered at room temperature in a cool, dry place for up to 2 days. If the sugar starts looking moist, you can always re-roll them in a little more sugar to freshen them up.

We hope you liked our Easy Sugared Cranberries! They make the perfect addition to any festive spread. Serve them with your Thanksgiving or Christmas desserts, cocktails, mocktails, cheese and crackers and so much more! They look as good as they taste. Add some to our Champagne Celebration Cake or our Cranberry Kiss Christmas Cocktail.