Homemade Cranberry Liqueur with Orange Zest is easy to make, delicious to drink and a beautiful gift to share over the holidays!
This might be one of my favorite things to make for the holidays but because I put it on my blog several years ago, it has for the most part languished in the nether world of being there but no one knowing it. As I finished this years batch of Homemade Cranberry Liqueur with Orange Zest along with the Coffee Liqueur (Faux Kahlua!) I bottled last week.
I decided this was one of those ‘have tos’ meaning I have to take some new photos, I have to re-post this article and then most importantly? You have to make it!
I’ve mentioned I make my Christmas gifts and each year there is a greater challenge to make something more unique than the last. When I made this several years ago it was one of my first forays into the making of a liqueur. As it turns out they are pretty easy. Some inexpensive vodka, sugar and your choice of flavors and you’ve got your own brew. How cool is that?
This favorite seasonal liqueur is simply cranberries, orange juice, orange zest, sugar and vodka. Simple ingredients but added together and given a couple of weeks to age and you’ll have something amazing to share…or squirrel away if you must!
In the past couple of years I’ve started making Homemade Cranberry Liqueur in time for Thanksgiving; it’s really perfect for the entire holiday season so you need a bit of a head start since it has to age for a couple of weeks (These cranberries were frozen from last year; I take NO chances on being able to find them in time!).
I’ll store a bottle in the freezer and a small sip is the perfect after dinner drink. I save the cranberry fruit after the liqueur has been bottled and those little liquored up pieces of fruit are fantastic on top of some vanilla ice cream or pound cake with a drizzle of the liqueur.
Still, the star attraction for me is this Sparkling Cranberry Cocktail. It’s seasonal, so simple and elegant and yet from the making of the liqueur to the final cocktail, it is so easy no one would imagine you only labored for a few minutes. Perfect right?
With a touch or orange in the mix it’s such a great flavor which is sure a nice bonus when first impressions are all about how beautiful it is; there is nothing homemade looking about this Homemade Cranberry Liqueur. Though I’ve labeled the cocktail as a champagne one, the truth is I most often use either Italian Prosecco or Spanish Cava.
Making liqueurs is easy and delicious; here’s a few more I’ve tried with great success:
My Favorite Homemade Liqueurs!
I love making homemade liqueurs; they're easy and so rewarding. Great gift ideas too!
PIN ‘Homemade Cranberry Liqueur with Orange Zest’
Homemade Cranberry Liqueur
Homemade Cranberry Liqueur with Orange Zest is easy to make, delicious to drink and a beautiful gift to share over the holidays!
Ingredients
For the Cranberry Liqueur:
- 1 cup water
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 2 cups fresh cranberries
- 3 Tablespoons fresh squeezed orange juice
- 1 tablespoon grated orange rind
- 2 cups vodka (Use decent vodka but top shelf not required)
For the Champagne Cocktail:
- 1 & 1/2 oz Cranberry Liqueur, chilled
- 4 oz Champagne, Cava or Prosecco, chilled
Instructions
- Combine sugar and water in heavy saucepan and bring to boil. Simmer sugar syrup for three minutes, making sure all of the sugar has dissolved in the water.
- Add cranberries, orange juice and orange rind.
- Remove syrup mixture from heat and cool slightly.
- Add mixture to Cuisinart and chop just slightly to open up berries; cool completely.
- Add vodka and mix thoroughly.
- Pour into container; glass or plastic. Cover and store in a dark, cool location for 3 weeks. (I put mine in the garage).
- Stir ingredients every couple of days.
- Once the mixture is ready, strain through fine metal sieve lined with cheesecloth (I like butter muslin; it's much finer and is sure to catch every seed); saving the berries. Be careful and not eat the whole bowl full of these beauties; they are SO good!
- Pour liqueur into glass containers; serve chilled in liqueur or shot glasses or use to make the Cranberry Champagne Cocktail.
- Time does not include the 3 weeks for 'brewing.'
To Make the Cocktail:
- Pour the cranberry liqueur into chilled champagne glasses; top with your choice of chilled sparkling wine.
Notes
- I found the bottles I used the first year I did this at The Container Store; I've since seen them at World Market too but all retail bottles get pricey if making this for gifts. Now I buy bottles from Specialty Bottle and use this style; great size and inexpensive for gift giving.
- Butter Muslin is used in cheese-making and is a much finer weave than regular cheesecloth. Once you strain it you can wash it and use again. I usually strain twice to insure I get rid of any sediment!
Nutrition Information
Yield
64Serving Size
1 ozAmount Per Serving Calories 51Total Fat 0gSaturated Fat 0gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 0gCholesterol 0mgSodium 1mgCarbohydrates 7gFiber 0gSugar 7gProtein 0g
NOTE: Amanda is a friend on Twitter who lives in Australia and wanted to make this recipe. We might take cranberries for granted in the states; the majority of the world production of berries is from bogs in the US and Canada so typically they are only available as a frozen product in Australia. She and I conferred and I thought this would come together fine with frozen cranberries. Alas, seems Australia is suffering from a frozen cranberry shortage (Oh NO!!) so it was time to punt. She made her batch using dried cranberries and I wanted to share that link with you if you find yourself in her shoes. For a version using dried cranberries, please visit Amanda’s blog, Lambs Ear and Honey…tell her Barb sent you. π And cheers Amanda!
Hi Barb, love your web site and the great many recipes you’ve provided us. I made your cranberry liqueur this past holiday season to give as Christmas gifts and enjoy in my own home. I’ve found many ways to use the liqueur in various drinks and all have been fantastic. I found some really cool inexpensive decorative bottles at Marshall’s and TJ Maxx stores and ended up with a great looking, and cost effective, gift for neighbors and friends. I made two batches of the liqueur and had a large amount of leftover cranberries. I just couldn’t stand the thought of throwing out these perfectly good chopped berries so I used them in my favorite cranberry-orange bread and it was AWESOME. Plus it provided an additional food gift to give out with the liqueur. Thanks for making our lives more delicious!
I love hearing this Geoff…after all, the love I put into sharing isn’t so these recipes can just languish; I want people to make and enjoy them too!
I still have some of the chopped cranberries; I put them in the freezer because I didn’t want them to go bad (which I doubt they would have considering they are half vodka at this point!). I need to follow your lead this time and do the same and use them in a bread…umm, that sounds GOOD!
Thanks so much for your kind comment; much appreciated.
I love your site — so classy! π
I would like to try this out this Christmas season! When you say, “Add mixture to Cuisinart and chop just slightly to open up berries; cool completely”, do you mean put them in a blender or food processor and chop them coarsely? I apologize for this query as I this will be my first time to make a liqueur.
Thanks in a advance!
Thanks so much Atasha; your kind comment means the world to me!
And yes, that’s exactly what I mean. You don’t want mush, but want them broken up; coarsely chopped is perfect. So perfect I think I’ll just change it to those words! I hope you enjoy it; it’s delicious and so beautiful; sort of perfect right?
Many thanks for your prompt reply, Barb π Now I can make this gorgeous liqueur in time for Christmas!
Happy Thanksgiving! I also wish you advance Merry Christmas — may it be as awesome as you are!
Cheers,
Atasha
Oh how sweet you are…thanks so much!
Mine is done and I want to drink some now…but I know I best wait. Which is hard. π
This is fantastic – I am absolutely going to make this!!
That’s funny, I just did a post last week about cocktail infusions – this one is definitely more of a cordial and I can just imagine it would be lovely to put a slurp of this into a glass of prosecco!
It is fantastic with Prosecco! I haven’t done much else with it because that combination is so perfect.
This looks gorgeous! And the champagne cocktail looks very festive (not to mention tasty!). I’ve never made my own liqueurs or even infused vodkas — really need to get into it. Anyway, thanks for this.
what is the yield (in cc’s or ounces) from one recipe? I want to make a total of 1 gallon to give as gifts. It would really help if I knew from the start how much of each ingredient I would need.
Thank you so much!
I don’t have an exact measure Marilyn but I just added the quantities in the recipe and figure that the end output would be a bit more than a quart per recipe. Since a gallon has four quarts I would estimate you would have to quadruple the ingredients to make sure you had a gallon.
I was smitten with this recipe as soon as I saw it! Made a batch this morning and can’t wait to try it next month! Don’t know if I’ll be generous enough to give it away as gifts! Haha! Thank you, Barb!
You have inspired me to try this…and, possibly, others as well. I love that you give bottles of liqueur at the holidays. That’s a great idea.
I am so proud of how far you have come with your pictures. The original was lovely but the current ones are gorgeous!
We always make special product in special holidays π I love your idea! I’ll definitely try your style
Making this, even as I type. specialtybottles.com carries a very reasonable range of bottles for bottling these special gifts. I’m trying them this year.
I know…they have saved me a fortune as I used to buy at Crate and Barrel or Cost Plus and the stupid bottles were the priciest part of the gift! I hope you love it too; it’s a gorgeous liqueur.
Well, the results are in! π The family and friends loved the cranberry liqueur and are already “hinting” that they would be open to receiving more for Holidays 2013. I did make a second batch and added a couple of cinnamon sticks while it was infusing. That was quite nice as well. Thank you Barbara for helping me be one step ahead for 2013! π
So good to hear…I know I love it! It is simply the prettiest liqueur ever and doesn’t hurt that it tastes so good either does it. Here’s to 2013!
Barb, you are a genius! I recently embarked on a slivovitz adventure and a vanilla bean extract adventure and happen to have a bag of frozen cranberries and an extra bottle on my counter that could easily accomodate another flavored vodka project. I’m glad this works with frozen cranberries. Thanks so much for sharing. Wishing you happy holidays! π
You are too sweet but I’ll take it! This is so easy and so good; not to mention SO beautiful! Hope you love it like we do. All I know is I got bottles back from gift baskets in the hopes they would be refilled…that says something huh? π
how much does one batch of the Cranberry Liqueur make?
thanks.
This looks wonderful! Have you ever tried it with blackberries?
I have not but I would in a heartbeat…maybe substituting lemon juice for the OJ? I’ll have to try it!
I made your cranberry liqueur and brought it to Christmas dinner. It was the hit of the dinner. One person declared it the best after dinner drink he had in his life. Thank you for sharing. I have some cranberries left; I think I will make another batch.
Mary,
Somehow I missed your comment in December on the cranberry liqueur of mine that you made and what a pleasant surprise to read it now; so very happy you enjoyed it as much as we do. Cheers!
Seems to be something of a cranberry crisis here in Australia this Christmas & frozen cranberries are just not available. I’ve used the whole dried ones and they seem to have worked out well – with huge thanks to Barbara for her suggestions & support.
Merry Christmas from down under!
I love your spirit and more than that…love that it created such success. Thanks for sharing Amanda.