Fresh cranberries, vodka, sugar and water turn into this delicious Homemade Cranberry Liqueur with time doing most of the work! This makes wonderful Christmas gifts, poured into pretty bottles, it’s lovely red color is gorgeous! One of my favorite liqueurs! It takes about 3 weeks so start it now!
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Homemade Cranberry Liqueur
Tis the season. Oh, yes the season for Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas. All those things. But let’s not forget, it’s cranberry season!! Well, I don’t actually know if it’s cranberry season (don’t have a clue when they are harvested) but I do know they start appearing on the produce shelves right about now.
Click here to pin this Homemade Cranberry Liqueur now!
If you are like me, with slight food hoarding tendencies, you probably already have about 8 bags or so in your freezer from last year. Because apparently there is nothing worse than running out of cranberries.
So, you’ve made cranberry sauce, cranberry apple crumble, even cranberry muffins and you are at a loss. Well, you have come to the right place, have I got the answer for you. Homemade Cranberry Liqueur. Oh my. Quite possibly one of my most favorite homemade liqueurs, it’s easily up top with my Winter Solstice Brew.
Not only does it taste amazing, it makes the best gifts! Everyone loves it’s pretty color. You will be the favorite friend again when you hand cute bottles of this out at the Secret Santa party.
Homemade Cranberry Liqueur
Time does all the work in this delicious Homemade Cranberry Liqueur
Ingredients
- 2 cups sugar
- 1 cup water
- 12 ounce fresh cranberries
- 3 cups vodka
Instructions
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Place the sugar and water in a saucepan and over medium heat, cook for 5 minutes, stirring until the sugar dissolves. Remove from heat and let cool.
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Place cranberries in a food processor and process for about 2 minutes until finely chopped. Combine the sugar mixture, the cranberries and the vodka in a large batter bowl. Pour into a large jar and cap. Store in a cool dark place for 3 weeks, shaking every other day (or whenever you remember.)
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Strain through a cheesecloth lined sieve. Pour into bottles and enjoy the pretty color!
It can be stored refrigerated or at room temperature for about a year.
Recipe Notes
Note - this recipe takes about 30 minutes of prep time and then 3 weeks of aging.
Serving suggestion: Cranberry Cosmopolitan - Place crushed ice in a cocktail shaker. Add 1/2 cup cranberry liqueur, 1/4 cup Cointreau, and 2 tablespoons lime juice; strain into martini glasses. Yields 2 cocktails.
We love homemade liqueurs although we haven’t tried a cranberry version. Do you think I could make the excuse cranberries are good for me? I think this would make a fantastic gift. Get a nice container and then give it at Christmas or a hostess gift when you’re invited to dinner. I’m pinning.
I’ve made cranberry gin which I loved so can imagine this would be great too. I love the color cranberries give.
This is now a saved recipe. I make a sour cherry liquor and limoncello at home. Never made a cranberry one. Will definitely have to try this. 😍
Hello,
I discovered this awesome looking recipe just one and a half weeks ago and prepared it instantly. Now I have the problem that the mix doesn’t have much time to work its magic. Do you know what happens if I onl wait 2 weeks before I filter it?
It just won’t have as much flavor.
Can’t wait to see your cocktail post with this.
Um yes please! I made a blackberry liqueur a few years back and it turned out well in my jelly shots! I’ll have to try this one!
I know this is a while back…but what if I set it up and forgot???Will it still be good? I’m saving the cranberries for garnish 🙂
My mom loves cranberries, so I sent her your link and she made some that was ready for her birthday … we enjoyed it plain, and also with orange juice … thanks so much for the recipe!
i made this a couple weeks ago and cracked it open today… DELISH with ginger ale!! 🙂
It won’t be ready for Christmas! 🙁
Update?!
I have soaked blackberries in vodka and was not disappointed. Actually turned right around and made it again!
I am SO doing this. I have a batch of limoncello working its magic right now. Can’t wait!
Looks fabulous, can’t wait to hear how it has turned out!
Got it put together today, so we will be having Cranberry Liqueur for Christmas. It makes a great Seabreeze also. Fill a glass with ice, add a shot of vodka, fill glass with grapefruit juice, and add a shot of the liqueur, YUM.
i’m not sure i could do something like this–i’d undoubtedly bust into it before i was supposed to. 🙂
A cranberry liqueur sounds so good!
I have made this for the past several years to share with some of our good friends. Such a great and easy recipe.
it will be fabulous, because i have been making, and taste testing hooch for the last 2 weeks, i have pom, lemon and org ready to go, only becasue i can pick them from my garden, but i am ready to grind up the cranberries now!
I only have 4 bags of cranberries left in the freezer, because I used 4 for fresh cranberry sauce. So now I need to buy more, right?
I make a version of this and add orange peels-Delicious over ice with club soda and a lime wedge..everyone loves it..
I see no way it would not be delicious. Such a pretty color too–it would make a great gift. 😉
This looks amazing. I have made some lemon liqueur in the past and it was sensational – i left it for longer than you but the basic principle is the same. Sure it will be great!
How gorgeous. This looks and sounds wonderful. I hope you are having a great day. Blessings…Mary
This is great! I’m going to give this a whirl. We live minutes away from a cranberry marsh so we’ve got some to spare in the freezer! Great photos!
Now that looks like a friday favorite for sure!
It sure sounds good, will look forward to the outcome.
I love different liqueurs and this sounds so simple! I always keep a bottle of vodka in the freezer so it’ll be the cranberries I need to get – I see a visit to the supermarket in my future hehe.
You’re so funny! Now we have to wait and see… I know when I made my vanilla extract I had to wait a lot longer than 3 weeks, so this should be a piece of cake. I posted pictures before, during and after! I’ll be back!
Making some today, I like your straightforward recipe better than the one I have used in the past. But this part is important, use the drained cranberries to make a cranberry cinnamon cake with, I baked mine in a bundt pan. So delicious. Your favorite vanilla cake with the fruit stirred in will do. Enjoy.
Yes, better late than never is right. this sounds absolutely delicious! I could go cocktail crazy with this.
Make sure you get back to us on Dec 4!