This easy homemade cranberry simple syrup recipe is perfect for cocktails and drinks, especially around the holidays! This is a flavorful, liquid sweetener made with fresh cranberries. It’s great for Thanksgiving too!
Simple syrup is a liquid sweetener that can be used in all sorts of drinks and cocktails. Cranberry simple syrup has a delicious cranberry flavor that is perfect for the holidays. It can be used in all sorts of drinks, cocktails, mocktails, cranberry juice, and even seltzer water.
Homemade syrups are also used in baking and cooking like cranberry glaze or even a drizzle over cranberry muffins or gingerbread pancakes. The possibilities are endless!
All About Cranberries
Cranberries are a popular superfood that grows on long rows of vines in marshes or bogs. The marshes are flooded as part of the harvesting process. You can read more about this interesting harvest here!
Cranberries have many health benefits too. They’re a great source of vitamins and antioxidants.
These little berries play a big part in our traditional holiday food and decor! Cranberry sauce is a staple dish for Thanksgiving, as it goes great with turkey!
For Christmas, we use it in cocktails and desserts. We even add it to wreaths, tablescapes, and tall vases. It’s a very versatile berry!
Since we use it so often in cocktails, we made a simple cranberry syrup that’s an easy addition to gin and tonics, vodka sodas, holiday punches, and more! It’s super simple, using only three ingredients and about 15 minutes!
One of my favorite cocktails that uses cranberry simple syrup is our cranberry Moscow mule. It’s so flavorful with sugared berries and orange zest!
How to Make Cranberry Simple Syrup
Supplies
- Sieve
- Small saucepan
- Wooden spoon
- Jar to store the simple syrup
Ingredients
Fresh Cranberries – Use fresh cranberries to make this syrup.
Sugar – Granulated sugar or raw sugar will work when making simple syrup.
Water – This is used to dilute the sugar and berries making it syrup.
Directions
- In a saucepan, combine sugar, water, and fresh cranberries.
- Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring, so the sugar doesn’t burn.
- Boil for a few minutes, then turn the heat to medium and let the cranberries pop and soften and the sugar melt.
- After about 15 minutes, the cranberries will be totally soft, and the texture will be syrupy.
- Strain the mixture through a sieve into a jar with a large opening or a bowl.
- Press down with a wooden spoon to get all of the juice and flavor out of the cranberries and through the sieve.
How to Store Cranberry Simple Syrup
Store in a sterile, airtight container in the refrigerator. Sterilize a glass bottle or container by pouring boiling water into the bottle and dumping it out before adding the syrup.
Pro tip – Mark the bottle with the date, so you know how long it’s been in there. You can just use a piece of tape and stick it to the bottom of the jar.
We love using these bottles to serve it in… they’re only $6! They look nice with an herb inside the bottle too.
Frequently Asked Questions
It’s made to sweeten cocktails, coffee, desserts, and other dishes. It’s a liquid sweetener made from water and sugar. It can dilute the sweetness, and you can alter it to make different flavors.
Raw sugar is the best to use. You can also use cane sugar and granulated sugar too. You can also make a simple brown sugar syrup for winter cocktails or cakes.
It’s made of equal parts of sugar and water. It’s a diluted sweetener used in cocktails and some desserts. You can use different variations and if you need a thinker simple syrup, try rich simple syrup. Rich simple syrup is a 2:1 ratio, that’s 2 parts sugar to 1 part water.
It should be stored in the refrigerator and will last about 1 month. It can go bad after a month, so always make sure you smell it before using it.
The syrup will start to grow mold and will also look a little cloudy and separated. This means it’s not good and should not be consumed. Make another fresh batch to use
More Simple Syrup Recipe
Holiday Cocktails You’ll Love!
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Cranberry Simple Syrup
Ingredients
- 1 cup water
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 cup fresh cranberries
Instructions
- In a saucepan combine sugar, water, and fresh cranberries.
- Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring so the sugar doesn’t burn.
- Boil for a few minutes, then turn the heat to medium and to let the cranberries pop and soften and the sugar melt.
- After about 15 minutes the cranberries will be totally soft and the texture will syrupy.
- Strain the mixture through a sieve into a jar with a large opening or a bowl.
- Press down with a wooden spoon to get all of the juice and flavor out of the cranberries and through the sieve.
Nutrition
I’m wondering what the heat is for cooking. In the second step you say bring mixture to a boil at medium heat but then you say turn it down to medium to let the cranberries pop. I’m assuming one of these is wrong, which one is it?