Cranberries are often described as being both tart and sweet, but they definitely lean more towards the tart end of that spectrum. While they do contain sugar, cranberries typically have to be cooked in some way to bring out that sweetness. One unique way to sweeten them up is to candy them! These cranberries are cooked in a sugar syrup that brings out that natural sweetness and softens them slightly, then they are rolled in sugar to give them a crunch coating a sparkly appearance.
The trick to making these successfully is that once the sugar syrup is prepared, it needs to cool slightly before adding the berries. While the syrup does have to be hot enough to cook the berries, the berries will pop open and won’t look as good when they’re finished (though you can still eat them) if the syrup is too hot. I recommend bringing your syrup to a boil, then reducing it to a very low temperature. Add the cranberries all at once to lower the overall temperature of the syrup quickly and keep the heat on low while they soak in that syrup.
You’ll need to use fresh cranberries for this recipe, so be sure to stock up when they’re readily available during the fall and winter months. These candied cranberries can be eaten by hand if you’re a cranberry-lover, but I typically use them to garnish desserts because they look so beautiful. They also make a lovely garnish for drinks like Cranberry Sangria and other holiday cocktails.
Candied Cranberries
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup water
1 cup fresh, whole cranberries
for finishing: 1/2 cup super-fine sugar
Bring sugar and water to a boil in a small saucepan. When the sugar has dissolved completely, reduced the heat to the lowest setting and add in the cranberries all at once. Cook cranberries for 30 minutes on very low heat and do not allow the syrup to boil.
Place the superfine sugar in a medium bowl.
Drain the syrup from the cranberries and put the cranberries into the bowl with the sugar. Toss until cranberries are completely coated, then transfer berries to a flat surface and let them cool in a single-layer.
Makes about 1 cup.
Karen
December 29, 2015Two questions: can this be done with cranberries that have been frozen; once the syrup has been drained, what can it be used for?
James
December 30, 2015How long will these keep and what is the best way to store them?
Nicole
December 31, 2015Hi Karen – Great questions! No, this shouldn’t be done with frozen cranberries because they are too soft after being defrosted. They can, however, be used to make a cranberry-flavored syrup, which is what you have leftover after cooking the cranberries! The syrup can be used to flavor drinks like lemonade or sangria.
You can use it in place of sugar in this recipe: http://bakingbites.com/2013/12/spiced-cranberry-sangria/
Or try these cranberry Mai-Tais! http://www.moderntiki.com/cranberry-mai-tai/
Nicole
December 31, 2015James – I store them at room temperature and they are good for about 5 days. If you life in an area where it is very humid, I would store them covered, but otherwise they do not need to be covered.