Violet Flower Syrup.
PREP TIME: 30 minutes COOKING TIME: 20 minutes CANNING TIME: 10 minutes
YIELD: Varies according on the amount of juice that is used
There are many more uses for syrup than pancakes! You may flavor cocktails with fruit syrups, or pour them over fruit salads, yogurt, or cake to add a little something extra. This recipe serves as an excellent model for transforming almost any fruit into a flavorful and adaptable syrup.
INSTRUCTIONS
- The pits are the only thing standing between you and the ideal cherry syrup. There are a few approaches to handling them, which are as follows:
If you have access to high-quality juicing equipment that is able to process the pits, you should use that device to extract the juice.
it in order to get the liquid out.
You may extract juice from fruits and vegetables using hot water even if you don’t have a juicer.
To release the cherry’s juices, use the point of a paring knife to make a small hole in the center of each cherry. Place the cherries in a saucepan and add enough water so that they are almost completely submerged. Place over high heat and bring to a boil. Turn the heat down to low and let the mixture simmer for approximately twenty minutes, or until all of the color and taste from the fruit has transferred into the water. During the time that the mixture is simmering, you may, if required, add a little amount of more water to ensure that the fruit is not completely submerged in the liquid. Remove the particles using a strainer, and set aside the liquid to use in making your syrup.
The easiest and most inefficient way to do it is as follows: You should get some unsweetened cherry juice (or juice from another fruit).
After you have extracted some juice from fruit using one of the ways described above: - pour the fruit juice into a measuring cup. To one part juice, add two parts sugar or one and a half parts honey.
- Continue stirring the mixture while it is being cooked over low heat until the sugar or honey has fully dissolved. After taking the measurements, 1 tablespoon of lemon juice should be added for every pint of syrup.
- If you store fruit syrup in the refrigerator, it will keep for three months. It can be stored in the freezer for at least half a year. Put pint jars of fruit syrup into a water bath of boiling water for ten minutes to sterilize them before storing them at room temperature for a longer period of time. If you reside at a high altitude, you will need to adjust the canning time accordingly (see the Boiling Water Bath Canning chapter).
Violet Flower Syrup
PREP TIME: 15 minutes COOKING TIME: 10 minutes INFUSION DURING THE NIGHT: Twenty-four hours
YIELD: 2 cups
During the early part of the spring, violet plants only produce their edible blooms (Viola species) for a short period of time. This syrup, which has an amethyst hue and a delicate taste, helps to preserve them so that they may be enjoyed at any time of the year.
Variations:
You may use this technique with sassafras leaves, mint leaves, linden blossoms, elderflowers, cherry blossoms, and other edible flowers. You can also use it with fragrant leaves like sassafras and mint.
INGREDIENTS
- 1 cup of violet flowers that have been softly packed (no stems)
- 1 cup of water already boiling
- 2 cups sugar
INSTRUCTIONS
- Pinch the bottoms of the stems of each violet and remove them. It is recommended that you save them aside to use in a salad:
- Pinch the bottoms of the stems of each violet and remove them. It is recommended that you save them aside to use in a salad:
They can be eaten and have a pleasant flavor, but the syrup won’t take on any of their color. Get rid of the calyces (the green bases of the flowers). - Place the violet petals in a container made of heat-resistant glass or stainless steel (a canning jar is an excellent choice for this purpose).
- Ensure that the water is at a rolling boil. The petals of the violet should be soaked in the hot water. Leave covered at room temperature for twenty-four hours and without covering. A stunning blue-amethyst hue will develop in the liquid as the reaction continues.
- Place the flower petals and liquid in the top of a bain-marie (double boiler). A bain-marie may be created by placing a big bowl made of heatproof material, such as stainless steel or ceramic, on top of a pot that has been heated to medium-high heat and filling the pot with water to a depth of about an inch or two. Place the violets and the infusion made from the violets in the basin.
- After adding the sugar, continue cooking the syrup over the steam produced by the bain-marie, stirring often, until all of the sugar has dissolved completely. In the event that it does not, put in one tablespoon of lemon juice. Note that in order to maintain the beautiful color of this dish, you must ensure that you only use granulated white sugar in the preparation.
- Remove the flower petals from the syrup by passing it through a sieve with very small openings.
After the temperature of the syrup has returned to room temperature, pour it into glass jars and label them. Canning a syrup made from violet flowers in a hot water bath is not suggested.
Instead, refrigerate the syrup to keep it from going bad. When stored in the refrigerator, syrup made from violet flowers will remain use for at least six months.
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