This rosy spiced drink, made from fresh cranberries, makes a cheerful and warming holiday beverage. Caffeine-free too. Adapted from allrecipes.com.
Ingredients
- 3 1/2 quarts water (14 cups)
- 1 12-ounce package cranberries (3 cups)
- 1 teaspoon whole cloves
- 2 cinnamon sticks
- 2 oranges, juiced (about 1/2 cup)
- 2 lemons, juiced (about 1/3 cup)
- 1 cup sugar (or sweeten to taste, see note below)
- Additional cinnamon sticks for garnish (optional)
Directions
- Wash cranberries and put in a large pot with water, cloves and cinnamon sticks. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer for 30 minutes. Crush cranberries with a spoon (gently so you don’t pop a hot cranberry on yourself).
- Add orange juice and lemon juice. Sweeten to taste. Strain out cranberries if you like. Serve hot or cold.
Notes
- One cup of sugar makes a drink sweet enough for my kids. The original recipe calls for two cups, which is syrupy. This recipe results in about 18 grams of sugar per cup (8 ounce) serving, about a tablespoon per serving. For comparison, commercial sodas have about 24 grams of sugar per cup, and cranberry juice cocktail has 30 grams per cup.
- Commercial orange and/or lemon juice will work if you don’t have fresh.
- Double the spices if you like a stronger spice taste.
Here’s a link back to the post and pictures.
