Sugared / Candied Cranberries Recipe

Sugared cranberries, also known as candied cranberries, are a holiday staple because they’re really easy to make and they’re really versatile. You can eat them, use them for decorating pastries, and decorate with them around your home.

I’m sharing two different recipes for sugaring cranberries. The first is the quickest and easiest and works really well for sugaring cranberries that are going to be used for topping desserts:

Quick and Easy Sugared Cranberries

• Two Bags of Fresh Cranberries
• Apple juice
• Granulated Sugar

1. Place cranberries in a colander and rinse. Next, pour apple juice all over the cranberries in the colander. Toss the berries around to coat each one, by shaking the colander, while getting rid of all the excess juice at the same time.
2. Pour about 1 cup granulated sugar over the berries, shaking and tossing the colander to coat the berries in the sugar. (I use about 1/2 cup sugar per one bag of fresh cranberries. You can add more or less, depending on how frosty you’d like your berries to look).
3. Once the berries are all coated, transfer them to a parchment paper-lined tray. Place in the refrigerator and let sit for at least an hour or overnight. (This allows the sugar to really stick to the berries quite nicely. If you’re in a hurry, you can use them right away, you’ll just need to be a little more careful that you don’t smudge the sugar off while handling).

This next recipe creates more of a candy coated-like cranberry that has a bit of a stronger shell. These make a great for a sugary snack and work well in holiday food displays or crafts.

Simple Syrup Sugared Cranberries

• Water
• Granulated Sugar
• Two bags of Fresh Cranberries

1. Make simple syrup by placing 1/2 cup water and 1/2 cup granulated sugar in a saucepan. Turn heat to medium and stir until dissolved. Remove from heat and let cool until just slightly warm or room temperature.
2. Place cranberries in a colander and rinse. Next, pour simple syrup all over the cranberries in the colander. Toss the berries around to coat each one, by shaking the colander, while getting rid of all the excess juice at the same time.
3. Pour about 1 cup granulated sugar over the cranberries, shaking and tossing the colander to coat the berries in the sugar. (I use about 1/2 cup sugar for one bag of fresh cranberries. You can add more or less, depending on how frosty you’d like your berries to look).
4. Once the berries are all coated, transfer them to a parchment paper-lined tray. Place in the refrigerator and let sit for at least an hour or overnight. (This allows the sugar to really stick to the berries quite nicely. If you’re in a hurry, you can use them right away, you’ll just need to be a little more careful that you don’t smudge the sugar off while handling).