Cranberry Margaritas
No one should have to chew their cocktails. Cranberry Margaritas combines cranberry and lime juice. It’s a revamp of a recipe gone wrong for the holidays.
It’s day 2 of #CranberryWeek. Did y’all see the recipes yesterday? Didn’t they look delicious? I’m definitely pinning several for later. You can never have too many cranberry recipes.
This one here has a bit of a story behind it.
We were forever entertaining during the holidays. We called them orphans, but basically it was anyone who couldn’t travel home or had a place to eat for the holidays. I can’t remember a Thanksgiving or a Christmas without at least a few extra place settings.
Of course, with entertaining there’s comes cocktails or drinks of some sort. Well, one year my mother found this recipe for cranberry margaritas in BHG or something like that. She decided we should make them one year for Thanksgiving.
Have any of you bitten into a raw cranberry? *laughs* I see you make that face. You have haven’t you? It’s not the most pleasant experience for sure. They’re surprisingly crunchy. And they definitely bitter. It’s not the best experience, that’s for sure.
Well, this recipe called for fresh cranberries. No, we didn’t cook them. We blended them up with the tequila, Cointreau, and whatever else was in that recipe. I think it’s the first time I’ve chewed on a drink instead of sip on it. They were crunchy, to say the least.
However, I’ve always wanted to revamp that recipe and make it one that people will actually enjoy drinking during the holidays. The first thing on the list is to….
COOK THE CRANBERRIES!
The only thing crunchy in your glass should be the ice. Not the cranberries. That’s not to say you can’t float a few on top for effect and garnish, but I would not suggest blending them up with your ice and alcohol.
I turned my cranberries into simple syrup for the cranberry margaritas. I also added some frozen ones I thawed to the cocktail shaker prior to shaking it all up. I strained those out, though, because I didn’t want this to be a cocktail you eat instead of drink.
If you don’t want to cook the cranberries or go through the hassle (which, honestly, it takes like no time at all to make a simple syrup) of cooking the cranberries, then buy the frozen cranberries. The frozen cranberries are softer when they thaw out. Then, you can shake them with the tequila and Cointreau and still have that cranberry flavor without the crunch.
If you want a frozen cranberry margarita, then you can easily blend the frozen cranberries with some ice. Because I wouldn’t recommend blending straight up frozen cranberries for the pucker factor. Unless you plan on blending in some cranberry simple syrup with them, too. Then I’d say it’s okay to blend the frozen cranberries with your alcohol to make the frozen cranberry margaritas.

Cranberry Margaritas
No one should have to chew their cocktails. Cranberry Margaritas combines cranberry and lime juice. It's a revamp of a recipe gone wrong for the holidays.
Ingredients
- 1 cup margarita salt
- 1/4 cup red, sanding sugar
- 1/4 whole lime
- 1 cup cranberry juice
- 1/2 cup lime juice
- 1 cup tequila
- 1/2 cup cranberry simple syrup
- 1/4 cup whole cranberries
Instructions
- Combine the salt with the sugar in a shallow dish.
- Run the lime wedge around the edge of 4 glasses and dip the glasses into the salt and sugar combination. Set aside.
- Combine the remaining ingredients in a large pitcher.
- Fill each glass with salt and pour the margarita mixture over the ice.
- Garnish with cranberries and serve.
Nutrition Information
Yield
2Serving Size
1Amount Per Serving Calories 792Total Fat 0gSaturated Fat 0gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 0gCholesterol 0mgSodium 519mgCarbohydrates 135gFiber 2gSugar 124gProtein 1g
That's a bit absurd. Drink at your own risk!
See all the other cranberry creations being shared as we kick off Cranberry week today.
Follow #cranberryweek to see all the delicious recipes.
- Cranberry Dijon Ham by Cookaholic Wife
- Cranberry Margaritas by A Kitchen Hoor’s Adventures
- Salad with Cranberry, Pear, Walnuts and Gorgonzola by Palatable Pastime
How do I make a cranberry simple syrup?
I combined 1 cup cranberries with 1 cup sugar and 1 cup water. I brought it to a boil, stirred until the sugar melted, and simmered for about 30 minutes before I strained it through a fine mesh strainer and stored in a jar.
Love this story Christie. Funny too, since I’m also working on a cranberry margarita recipe, and thought the EXACT same thing with the first version I tried (directly from someone else’s recipe). I have a plan to remake it, just hasn’t happened yet. If I fail again, I’ll be giving your version a try!
It was the most interest Thanksgiving beverage. I’m sure Mom’s cursing me under her breath. LOL
We had orphan holidays after college! It was so fun to get together with friends. Thanks for the memory. This looks so festive for the holidays. Such a pretty color.
Those, to me, are the most memorable! Getting to know new people, conversations that are pee your pants hilarious. That’s what I remember. And miss.