I just quickly want to post this simple yet decadent dessert recipe. If you still think of Thanksgiving or holiday preparations, this quick-to-make palate pleaser is a perfect choice. It’s unbelievable tasty, contains just a few ingredients and it’s ready in a snap! Needless to say, this sweet but slightly tangy treat is great throughout the entire year. How could you resist?
My cranberry fool experiments
For some time — actually already in the summer — I wanted to develop an easy and simple fool recipe. I had several ideas, the newest one of which was raspberry lemon fool. However, since the Thanksgiving and holiday season are right here, I wanted to choose more relevant flavors. And what could be more relevant for the holiday season than cranberry? Yep, that’s the ultimate berry at this time of the year!
Just plain cranberry would have been too lame, so I wanted to combine different flavors to create the best ever taste. To try out different flavor combinations, I made small test batches.
For each batch, I added 1/4 cup (60 ml) mashed cranberries and 2 tablespoons Confectioner’s Style Swerve. I added some flavorings to each batch and tested the result (my personal rating is after the ingredients; * = inedible, ***** = incredible):
- 1 tiny drop orange essential oil + 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract ***
- 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract + 1 pinch ground Ceylon cinnamon ****½
- 1/4 teaspoon almond extract ****
- 1/4 teaspoon cherry flavoring + 1/4 teaspoon almond extract ***
- 1/4 teaspoon cherry flavoring + 1/4 rum flavoring *****
When I tasted the mixtures with a spoon, I still added a pinch of cinnamon or a dash of vanilla extract to those test batches which didn’t have them. It was really difficult to decide which flavor combination to choose in the end. I was tasting and tasting and pondering and wondering and finally chose the one with cherry and rum. It just felt indescribably decadent and absolutely perfect for the holidays. I have to admit that these combinations were quite limited, and you can easily use days and days in the search for the best flavor combination.
What was interesting, my original preferences changed immediately when I added some cream to the test batches. When I was just tasting the flavored cranberry mixture, I thought the combination or cranberry, orange and vanilla was the perfect choice, but after adding some cream it tasted somewhat weird. On the other hand, the combination of cranberry, cherry and rum completely blew me away when I added whipped cream with it. It just was unbeatable! A close runner-up was the combination of cranberry, vanilla and cinnamon.
And here is finally the recipe with the winning flavor combo:
- 1 cup = 240 ml mashed cranberries (fresh, or frozen and thawed)
- 1/2 cup = 120 ml Confectioner’s Style Swerve OR other sweetener of choice to taste
- 2 teaspoons natural cherry flavoring
- 2 teaspoons (or to taste) natural rum flavoring
- 1 cup = 240 organic heavy cream without food additives
- Combine the mashed cranberries, sweetener, cherry flavoring and the rum flavoring in a medium bowl. Mix until well mixed.
- Cover, and refrigerate at least 30 minutes to let the flavors mingle.
- While the cranberry mixture is in the fridge, whip the heavy cream until soft peaks form and set aside.
- When ready to serve, layer whipped cream and cranberry mixture in serving glasses.
- Garnish with fresh cranberries, mint leaves or for the most decadent taste: grated very dark chocolate.
| Nutrition information | Protein | Fat | Net carbs | kcal |
| In total: | 5.8 g | 85.7 g | 16.6 g | 861 kcal |
| Per serving if 4 servings in total: | 1.4 g | 21.4 g | 4.2 g | 215 kcal |
| Per serving if 6 servings in total: | 1.0 g | 14.3 g | 2.8 g | 143 kcal |
| Per serving if 8 servings in total: | 0.7 g | 10.7 g | 2.1 g | 108 kcal |
Tips for variation and for serving
You can prepare this scrumptious dessert beforehand. Just make the cranberry mixture, whip the cream and refrigerate in separate dishes. When ready to serve, just layer the cream and the cranberry mixture in serving glasses, decorate and serve.
This recipe makes relatively small servings. There are two reasons for this: First of all, the flavor is so intensive that a little goes a long way. Secondly, the last thing you want after a heavy meal is a heavy dessert. A better option is to have a tiny sweet and fresh dessert. On the other hand, if you have a dessert table full of choices, this beautiful dessert comes in handy. In that case, serve it in schnapps glasses.
If you are serving the dessert only for adults, you can replace the rum flavoring with real rum or other unsweetened alcohol of choice.
If you have more time, by all means be creative and try different flavor combinations to find the perfect one for you. You can also use other spices and even herbs to reach the ultimate flavor combination. I would love to hear from your experiments!
P.S. Only five days left and then the special offer for my new cookbook is gone forever! If you are quick, you get the cookbook at a discounted price + my “Healthy Drink Recipes” book for free! You can take a closer look of the table of contents in the photos below. Just click the photos to see larger images of them:
Do you cook the cranberries before mashing? How do you mash them if they are not cooked?
Hi Madeleine, the cranberries are not cooked. I usually use immersion blender to mash them.
Thanks. Don’t have an imersion blender. Maybe I’ll put them in the blender or food processor
You’re welcome. Hope it works!