These sugared cranberries are an easy and fun treat - crunchy, tart and sweet. They're perfect for snacking on and decorating cakes and baked goods during the Holidays and Christmas. They're lightly spiced, and if you put them in a tin or jar - perfect for gifting!
I used these sugared cranberries to decorate my gingerbread cheesecake. This easy peppermint fudge and these Christmas thumbprint cookies are perfect for gifting as well!
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🎄 Why you'll LOVE this recipe
- Crunchy and refreshing: They're sweet, tangy, and so crunchy! They're very satisfying to eat.
- Easy gifting idea: They're so easy to make, aren't time consuming, and are such a delicious, refreshing snack!
- Gorgeous edible decorations: They look like frost covered berries and make the most stunning Christmas cake and cupcake decorations.
- Subtle spice flavor: The cranberries are coated in a spiced syrup, giving them a warm holiday flavor.
📝 Key ingredients
Read through for all the tips you will need for success!
Full steps and ingredients in recipe card below.
- Cranberries: only use fresh cranberries for this recipe. Frozen won't work well, they will become soft and mushy as they thaw- and the sugar coating will dissolve.
- Sugar coating: You can use any kind of sugar for this. I prefer to use coarse white sparkling sugar. You can use granulated or powdered sugar as well!
- Aromatics: I added a cinnamon stick, cardamom pods, and an orange rind into the syrup coating for some extra flavor. This isn't necessary for success, but it helps elevate the sugared cranberries! You can use whatever citrus and spices you prefer.
👩🍳 How to make candied sugared cranberries
Step 1: Combine ½ cup sugar, ½ cup water, cinnamon stick, and cardamom in a medium sized saucepan. Thinly peel the orange rind and add just the rind into the saucepan.
Step 2: Heat on medium heat, stirring occasionally everything incorporates. Bring to a simmer. Simmer for 3 minutes.
While the syrup simmers, wash the cranberries and pick out any with soft spots. Line a large sheet or plate with parchment paper.
Step 3: Take the syrup off the heat. Add the cranberries and stir quickly to coat. Remove them immediately with a slotted spoon and transfer onto the parchment lined baking sheet in a single layer.
Step 4: Let the cranberries dry for about 10 minutes. Pour your sugar of choice (sparkling, granulated, or powdered) onto a wide bowl or plate. Coarse sparkling sugar and powdered sugar are my favorite for this!
Step 5: Add some of the syrup coated cranberries into the sugar. Use a spoon to help roll the cranberries around and coat in sugar completely.
Step 6: Do this in batches until all of the cranberries are coated. Enjoy!
✔️ Expert tips
- Don't use bruised or mushy cranberries: Only use fresh cranberries that appear firm all the way around. If they have a soft spot, the juice will dissolve the sugar and they will become sticky and gloopy.
- Don't cook the cranberries in the syrup: You only need to coat them briefly in the syrup and immediately remove them. If they get too hot, the skin will split and the sugar coating will dissolve with time.
- Experiment with different types of sugars: Each one gives you a different level of sweetness and crunch!
🥄 Make ahead and storage
Sugared cranberries store well in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. For them to keep as long as possible, make sure to pick out all the bruised, damaged, and soft cranberries. They need to be as fresh and crunchy as possible.
❔ Granulated vs Sparkling vs Powdered sugar for Candied Cranberries
I've tried these three sugars and they all give you different delicious results:
- Sparkling sugar: This is a very coarse, sparkly white sugar that you can find in the cookie or cake decorating section of the grocery store. It gives the cranberries the most amount of sweetness, crunch, and looks like ice is covering the cranberries!
- Granulated sugar: Still crunchy, but finer in texture than the sparkling sugar. It's a great, easily accessible sugar for coating cranberries.
- Powdered sugar: This is a powdery sweet coating that just melts in your mouth. It's a completely different experience from granulated and coarse sparkling sugar because it isn't crunchy at all. I used to eat powdered sugar candied cranberries as a child and they are my favorite nostalgic holiday treat!
🍬 What Else can I Coat in Sugar?
You can coat or candy loads of things using this option. Try tart berries or fruit for a tart treat, or even rosemary sprigs for beautiful edible decorations that you can use on top of cheesecakes or cakes.
Anything tart that isn't out open and juicy will work well. If it's cut open and juicy, the sugar will dissolve and become a sticky mess. Tart blueberries and whole sour cherries would be so fun!
📖 Recipe FAQs
No, frozen cranberries will not work! They will thaw out and become watery and mushy. The moisture will cause the sugar to dissolve into a sticky mess.
Coarse sparkling sugar was my favorite coating for sugared cranberries. I also tried regular granulated sugar and powdered sugar - they both
worked and tasted great!
I haven't tried using any sugar- free sweeteners in this recipe. Granulated sugar-free sweetener should work for coating the berries. But it's not sticky, so I don't think it would work for the syrup sticky coating!
You can skip the spices and orange peel, but it does give the syrup a beautiful spiced flavor! It's a lot more subtle when the cranberries get coated in the syrup but you can still taste a hint of spice and warmth.
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📖 Recipe
Sugared Cranberries
Equipment
- Medium saucepan
Ingredients
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup water
- 1 stick cinnamon
- 4 pods cardamom (optional)
- 1 large orange
- 3 cups fresh cranberries 340g, 12oz
- ½ cup sugar for coating granulated, powdered, or coarse sparkling sugar
Instructions
- Combine ½ cup sugar, ½ cup water, cinnamon stick, and cardamom in a medium sized saucepan. Thinly peel the orange rind and add just the rind into the saucepan.½ cup granulated sugar, ½ cup water, 1 stick cinnamon, 4 pods cardamom, 1 large orange
- Heat on medium heat, stirring occasionally everything incorporates. Bring to a simmer. Simmer for 3 minutes.
- While the syrup simmers, wash the cranberries and pick out any with soft spots. Line a large sheet or plate with parchment paper.3 cups fresh cranberries
- Take the syrup off the heat. Add the cranberries and stir quickly to coat. Remove them immediately with a slotted spoon and transfer onto the parchment lined baking sheet in a single layer. Let the cranberries dry for about 10 minutes.
- Pour your sugar of choice onto a wide bowl or plate. Coarse sparkling sugar and powdered sugar are my favorite for this!½ cup sugar for coating
- Add some of the syrup coated cranberries into the sugar. Use a spoon to help roll the cranberries around and coat in sugar completely. Do this in batches until all of the cranberries are coated. Enjoy!
Video
Notes
- Don't use bruised or mushy cranberries.
- Don't cook the cranberries in the syrup, you only need to coat them briefly.
- Experiment with different types of sugars, each one gives you a different level of sweetness and crunch!
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