Every year I order 75 pounds of cranberries. I started doing this after a friend gifted me with 100 pounds of cranberries. When I first saw all of those berries I was concerned about how I was going to use them, but with a little creativity I realized it wasn’t hard to come up with lots of delicious recipes and ways to preserve them.

Cranberries are packed with antioxidants, vitamins, minerals, and plant compounds, some of which have been shown to be helpful with urinary tract infections. Not only that, but they taste good in a variety of recipes. I have added them to squash dishes, made them into a marinade for chicken, added them to all kinds of baked goods, and have also used them to make barbecue sauce. I once thought cranberries were just for the holiday season, but now I use them all year round.

One of my favorite ways of preserving cranberries is by juicing them and canning the juice.

A steam juicer is the easiest way to extract juice from the cranberries — you can get more juice with less work and during the height of canning season less work is a blessing. At one time I thought I would love to have a Mehu Liisa steam juicer, but being of frugal mind, I purchased a Norpro steam juicer from our local Bi-Mart for almost half the price and it works just fine.

One of the good things I have found with using the steam juicer is that the pulp that is left over after juicing can be put through a food mill and put to other uses. For instance I use the cranberry pulp to add to applesauce for a nice change from plain applesauce. Cranberry/applesauce is delicious!

To steam juice cranberries simply pick through them to remove any bruised or icky berries and wash them. Add water to the bottom part of the steamer, put the middle and top part on, and place the cranberries in the steamer’s top basket. Bring the water to a boil. Once the water starts boiling, turn the heat down to keep it at a slow boil.

A steam juicer works by bursting the fruit (that is in the top part of the steamer) with steam (that rises up from the bottom part of the steamer through the hole in the middle part) and then collecting the fruit’s juice as it drains out into the middle part of the juicer or the “collection pan.” There is a small hose that allows the juice to flow out of the collection pan and into another container. Once all of the cranberries are juiced you can move on to the canning part. You will know when most of the juice has been extracted because the berries will change from a bright red to a washed out color and be all pulpy in texture.

If you do not have a steam juicer then add equal amounts of water and cranberries to a stainless steel or enamel covered kettle. Heat the cranberries to a boil and simmer until all of the cranberries have popped. Depending on ripeness this can take from 15 to 30 minutes.

Once all of the cranberries have popped, fit a strainer over a large pot and line it with a couple layers of cheesecloth, flour sack towel, or pillowcase. Scoop the cranberry mixture out and put it in the strainer. After everything is strained nicely you’re ready to can the juice.

Put the pot of juice on the stove and heat the juice to a boil. Add sugar to taste. If the cranberry juice is too concentrated, you can add some distilled water to tone it down a bit. Do not use chlorinated tap water or hard well water as it will make the juice have an “off” taste. Boil for one minute.

When the juice has boiled for a minute, you can start filling the jars. When filling the jars, the juice sometimes forms foam or bubbles on the top. Just scoop it off with a spoon. Leave a ¼ inch of headspace, wipe rims, and place lids on the jars. Process the cranberry juice in a water bath for 15 minutes. (Check your altitude chart if you live above 1,000 feet in elevation.)

If you are juicing a small amount of berries and do not want to can the juice it will keep in the refrigerator for two to three weeks.

You can drink this juice right out of the jar or mix it with carbonated water for a fizzy drink that kids love, mix it with orange juice and 7-Up for a different flavored punch, or use it as a mix in a variety of cocktails.

Once you taste home-canned cranberry juice, you’ll never want to go back to store-bought cranberry juice!