Honey-Sweetened Cranberry Juice – WATCH the VIDEO
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Easy Instant Pot Drink (and a tip!)
You can test that by pressing “Keep Warm/Cancel” button and if the light toggles off and on, you can disable the “keep warm” function and instead it will “cancel” automatically. As mentioned, not all Instant Pots have this ability, so either check your user manual or press the “Keep Warm/Cancel” button twice to check.
For this recipe, you don’t want the Instant Pot to continue to keep warm, therefore, you can also simply press “Cancel” once the cooking time has concluded.
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At what temperature does raw honey loose it’s effectiveness?
Raw honey is unheated and minimally processed. Heating honey past its’ maximum hive temperature of 96 degrees Fahrenheit changes the honey’s structure and degrades its quality. Furthermore, it destroys the beneficial enzymes and nutrients that are highly coveted in raw honey.
Want to know why raw honey is best?
See this: Natural Alternative Sweeteners
To get maximum benefit from using raw honey, be sure to test your cranberry juice before adding honey to it. You don’t want the juice to be over 96 degrees Fahrenheit before adding raw honey.
Alternatively, you may use other mineral rich sweeteners that are not destroyed by heat such as maple syrup or coconut sugar. For me, honey and cranberry go perfect together, but if you’re in a rush, feel free to use other healthy sweeteners.
One Final Tip
Cooking liquids in the pressure cooker can be notoriously time-consuming. It takes the cooker time to bring all that liquid up to pressure then the actual cooking time. For this reason, I only add 1/2 gallon of water for the cooking time. I add the remaining water after it’s strained. Doing it this way also kickstarts the cooling process.
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Enjoy as Cider or Iced
This is a great drink to be enjoyed warm (but not to exceed 96 degrees Fahrenheit 😉 ). We prefer to drink this cold, topped with a few lemon slices and a sprig of mint to keep with the holiday cheer.
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Honey-Sweetened Cranberry Juice
This festive drink can be made in the Instant Pot and enjoyed hot or iced.
Ingredients
- 4 cups fresh cranberries
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 1 gallon filtered water divided
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 1/2 to 1 cup raw honey
Instructions
Add cranberries, cinnamon and 1/2 gallon of filtered water to pressure cooker inner pot.
Close lid and set to sealing position.
Press "Manual" and reduce time to 8 minutes.
After cooking time has concluded, turn off Instant Pot by pressing "Cancel" and allow to naturally release pressure.
When safe to do so (check for safety valve to be down), carefully open lid and remove inner pot. Set it on a cooling rack or another safe surface to cool.
Once cooled enough to handle, strain to remove cranberry pulp and cinnamon stick.
Add remaining water and continue to cool juice before adding lemon and honey.
When juice has cooled considerably, add freshly squeezed lemon juice and raw honey. Stir well.
Enjoy slightly warm as a cider or iced as juice. Can be stored in refrigerator for up to 2 months.
Recipe Notes
Note: To keep the maximum nutrient and enzyme profile of raw honey, be sure the juice has cooled to 99F degrees before adding it.
If you liked the recipe above, please consider rating the recipe and leaving a comment below. Also, be sure to follow me on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest.
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I don’t have an instant pot. Could you please give me slow cooker and stove-top instructions.
For slow-cooker: toss cranberries, water and cinnamon and cook for 6-8 hours on low. Then proceed with the rest of recipe. For stove-top: bring cranberries, water and cinnamon to a boil, then reduce heat to medium and slightly simmer for about 45 minutes for all cranberries to cook down, then proceed with rest of recipe. Enjoy!! 🙂
Made this today! We’ve been drinking it warm since it’s been snowing all day and it’s soo good! My husband keeps saying how much he enjoys it so I think it’s safe to say we’ll be making it again soon. Thanks for sharing!
Awesome to hear, Sarah! Thanks for the sweet comment.
Wow so easy to make and that color is gorgeous! I have all of the ingredients right now. Will give it a try!
Wow ! This cranberry juice looks so good ! It will go well with many holiday dishes for sure!
What a festive and oh so pretty holiday drink, and I love that it’s made in the Instant Pot!
I am so impressed by this!! I have some fresh cranberries that need to used, will give this a try! Yum!
This looks so fresh and colourful – great for the festive season! Love the tips about heating raw honey 🙂
I love this for the holidays! We don’t drink so we always appreciate a festive drink for parties!
This is one of our favorites! And so easy.
Oh wow, I love that this can be made in the IP and uses honey! Great idea 🙂
I love the idea of presenting this for the holidays!! My family and extended family will so appreciate it, and it’s a beautiful addition to such a pretty holiday time!
This would be SO yummy as a festive warm beverage in lieu of apple cider (too sweet for me on its own). And it’d be extra good with splash or two of good whiskey for the adults. 😉
Sounds like a plan. Apple cider is too sweet for my liking but this is perfect because the sweetness can be controlled. Thanks Elaina.
what a great holiday drink idea! I love the color and that it can be made in an Instant Pot!
Thank you Jennifer! The color is beautiful.
Wow that’s brilliant! Never thought of making my own cranberry juice in the instant pot. Will be trying this soon because I add cranberry juice to my morning detox drink, but can’t find a low sugar version. This is way better than the organic store option.
Thanks for sharing!
Yes – and you can control how much sweetener you use. Thanks for commenting!
I can definitely see myself having this delicious drink cold and hot. Great recipe!
Hope you get to try it Catherine!