Cranberry Wassail Recipe

 The snow hasn’t fallen yet, but the temperature has. When the weather starts dipping, that’s when I pull out this Cranberry Wassail. Full of flavor and soothing to the soul, you’ll make this for all your holiday gatherings.

 

 

Almost 5 years ago I wrote this post after it had been featured in Old Orchard’s newsletter. I had submitted it to a contest they were running, and it won! Back then I had no idea how to style my photos, and let’s just say, no one was interested in a pot of liquid and fruit. So I finally decided it was time to update with some nicer photos of one of my favorite wintertime beverages.

 

The first time I made wassail I followed a recipe that had me juicing 10+ Oranges, some lemons, and then boiling it forever. It was delicious, but oh so much work. Cranberry Wassail was created with both ease and flavor in mind. 

 

It must have been a few years since I last made this particular wassail because when Mark came home his reaction was one of delight. He’s not a big fan of hot beverages like myself, but he does love cranberries. His eyes totally lit up as he walked in the house, breathed in the scent of simmering fruit and spices, and then drank a healthy mug of it.  

Now if you want, you can strain the cooked fruit and spices out, but in our house we kind of find it fun to have these pieces of fruit floating in our wassail. The allspice berries not so much, but they are easy to spoon out, as well as the cinnamon sticks. We then garnish the Cranberry Wassail with a few frozen cranberries – it helps cool the drink down for little kids – and an orange slice on the side of the cup.