Orange Blossom Candied Cranberries Recipe on Food52 (2024)

Easy and delicious. A nice tart balance to all the holiday sweets and great colorful garnishes.

Liz December 3, 2021

these cranberries are a delicious holiday treat. Just enough orange blossom water to know these are special. Used as a garnish to a cheese tray as well as a garnish for Cosmopolitans!

pat November 30, 2021

Can you used frozen cranberries?

I wanted something fairly girlie and sweet, so I did this with previously frozen cranberries, used rosewater and filled some with marzipan and some with blitzed pistachios. I had to use a tiny tip and the filling had to be soft to pipe. It was a labor of love, though, because they were gorgeous and so delicately delicious. I will definitely make them again. I wonder how they would keep...maybe make them up to the rolling in sugar point and store??? Thanks for the idea!

I've just made these; about 10 down the gullet and can tell already they're going to be addictive...I love the way they crunch then pop, and the subtle orange blossom flavour is lovely.
I wonder what rosewater or kewra would be like here?

Sandy January 14, 2016

What did I do wrong? For the first batch, I followed the directions completely, using fresh cranberries. They came out hard and very tart and bitter. I allowed the second batch to soak in the hot sugar syrup as it cooled. They were then slightly softer, but still bitter and no fun.

These are good! The orange blossom flavor is the same as baklava from a local bakery. I found that placing sugar in a wide-bottom soup bowl made for easier coating than on a plate. I doubled the recipe to use up the full bag of cranberries. I think the single batch recipe makes enough simple syrup to double the cranberries. Unfortunately, I doubled it so have a LOT of flavored simple syrup that I hate to waste. I'd love dessert and co*cktail recipes and/or ideas.

Where do you find orange blossom water?

Made these before Christmas - ridiculously simple and ridiculously good! I was amazed and impressed, as were my gift recipients ... put them in little packages for Xmas gifts. Big hit!

I can only get frozen cranberries here in Taiwan. Can these be made with frozen??

The whole is greater than the sum of its parts. These are fabulous. Made a slight variation for a co*cktail party last weekend, and was surprised to see all of them gobbled up, with multiple requests for the recipe. I will make these again and again this holiday season, and for many to come.

These are gorgeous, and I think they would make a lovely garnish for just about anything you put on a Holiday table. Or maybe just in a big, fat bowl by themselves.

I made a batch last week and the whole family loved them. They are irresistible!

I made these for our Thanksgiving feast today! Tried to track down orange blossom water, but the Whole Foods in my area doesn't carry it anymore and I was out of time, so I decided to still go with the idea and just modify the recipe. My boyfriend is not a fan of rose as a flavoring, so using rosewater was out, and I thought an extract would be too powerful. What I landed on was doing the simple syrup with clementine juice and sprigs of fresh thyme. It turned out so well! They looked so pretty on display in a glass dish, and everyone loved how easy these were to pop in their mouths throughout the day. I've also saved the syrup and have been using it in co*cktails! So far: on the rocks with bourbon, and in my own new version of a French 75. Thanks for a great recipe!

These are amazing. I made them twice last year for Xmas and for New Years. The second batch I made a mixture of half mandarin vodka and half sugar syrup. The cranberries were "poppier" and really fun. They make great drink garnishes.

I had never heard of candied cranberries until I saw this recipe. I'm making them for a second time already to bring to Thanksgiving dinner. They were so sugary and tart and intriguing. They also look like beautiful Christmas ornaments. I think these will become my holiday tradition!

Don't discard the lovely simple syrup you have made! I plan to use it to make Ramos Gin Fizz's :)

Fantastic! I loved these, the way they "pop" when you bite them is happiness in a delicious little bite! Thanks so much for posting this recipe.