Berrycordial Recipes

HOMEMADE BERRY CORDIAL RECIPE

Steps:

• Wash the berries, no need to remove all leaves and vines. Discard rotten and bruised berries.
• In the casserole that fits the cordial steamer snuggly, fill with water, leaving 2.5in (3cm) at the top. Top with the cordial steamer and pin the tube so the juice doesn't come out.
• In the cordial steamer, layer berries and sugar. Place the lid on and place something heavy on top. Do not open the lid during the steaming process.
• How long it will steam depends on your berries, but my red currant cordial needs about 80-90 minutes. It's usually not less than an hour, although raspberries, plums and pears need less, about 45 minutes.
• When it's done, take the pin off the tube and fill your sterilized glass bottles. Keep in a cool and dark place.
• Add the washed berries and water to a large casserole. Let it boil (covered with a lid) until the berries are pale and have released most of their juices. Make sure the berries don't break, as this will make your cordial cloudy.
• Add a damp old kitchen towel or cheesecloth to a large colander and the colander over a new casserole or big bowl. Pour the berry water in. Let this drip for at least one hour, do not help it as this will also make the cordial cloudy.
• Once it's done, pour the berry water back into a large saucepan along with sugar (and spices if using). Bring this up to a boil, remove foam with a spoon and once the foam is gone, pour into sterilized glass bottles. Keep in a cool and dark place.
• This method retains the most amount of nutrients in the berries, but it is also the one that keeps the worst. Plus, it needs more sugar to help preserve the cordial.
• Add washed berries to a blender or mash in a large bowl. You may need some water to help mash it. Pour over water and lemon juice (or citric acid/tartaric acid). Let this mixture sit overnight.
• Strain it through a sieve covered in a cheesecloth or damp old kitchen towel - remember to keep a bowl underneath. Combine with sugar. Pour into sterilized glass bottles.
• This will keep for up to 3 weeks in the fridge, but the best way to preserve it is to freeze it! To freeze: pour into smaller bottles, leaving some room as the liquid expands once frozen.
• When ready to serve, add 1 part cordial with 4 parts water to a glass. You may want more or less water depending on your own preference. Delicious both warm and cold, in a gløgg for Christmas or in this blackberry martini!

BERRY CORDIAL

Steps:

• Put berries in a 6-8qt pot and add water; bring to rolling boil. Reduce to bare simmer and cover for 20 minutes, or until berries lose their shape.
• Drain and strain through cheesecloth, squeezing out as much juice as possible. Allow to cool to room temperature. Measure quantity of juice.
• Wash out pot and return juice to pot. Add 1- 1 1/2 cup sugar per quart of juice. Return to the boil, then reduce heat to low and simmer for 10-20 minutes. Allow to cool to room temperature again.
• Add 1 cup alcohol (vodka or white brandy) per quart of sweetened juice. (I personally like a mixture of the two, in a 2:1 ratio, as I find this smooths out any imperfections in either alcohol.).
• Allow to sit for at least 2 weeks before bottling. Can be drunk immediately or allowed to age - it is distinctly better with 4-6 weeks of aging. For longer aging, make sure it is TIGHTLY sealed.

HOW TO MAKE HOMEMADE FRUIT AND BERRY CORDIALS - BERRY

Steps:

• Add all ingredient to a large sauce pan and stir to combine. Bring to a boil over high heat.
• Once the mixture comes to a boil, continue to boil and stir for 5 minutes. Stir continuously and do not leave the mixture unattended.
• Next, turn off the heat, but leave the sauce pan on the burner. Allow the mixture to steep and cool for 1 hour.
• After the hour has passed, pour the mixture through cheesecloth to drain and to remove all of the berry seeds and/or pulp.
• Transfer to a sterile bottle or jar. Keep refrigerated.
• To use, pour approximately 1/4 cup of the syrup into a large drinking glass. Add ice and pour in 1 1/2 cups of cold water. Stir and enjoy.

BLACKBERRY CORDIAL

Steps:

• Fill quart jars with blackberries. Pour vodka in to cover berries. Put on the lids and put jars in a cool, dark place and forget about them for 2 to 4 weeks. Then, pour contents through a strainer and reserve liquid. In a heavy saucepan combine sugar and water and bring to boil, long enough to dissolve sugar. When this syrup cools a bit, add to blackberry liquid and stir. Pour liquid into container of choice and put in freezer. When chilled, it's good as is or, as we tried it, in a juice glass with ginger ale. It's indescribably good.

BLUEBERRY CORDIAL

Steps:

• Rinse a heat-proof 2-quart jar with boiling water, drain it, and combine sugar, blueberries and vodka in it. Seal jar tightly and let cordial stand in a cool, dark place, shaking the jar occasionally, for two months.
• Strain the cordial through a very fine sieve, lined with a triple thickness of rinsed and squeezed cheesecloth, into a bowl and transfer it to a decanter. Serve the cordial as an after-dinner drink or with tonic over ice as a cocktail.

BLUEBERRY CORDIAL

Steps:

• In a large saucepan combine everything. Simmer over medium heat and stir with wooden spoon to dissolve the sugar. Mash the berries as they soften, with the spoon, or a potato masher. I tried an immersion blender which worked ok but the masher was the most effective.
• Once dissolved, let cool, then steep overnight in the refrigerator. This will get the max flavour from the berries.
• Next day, strain into a bottle (clean softdrink is perfect). I used a funnel with a wire mesh strainer over the top, and poured a little at a time. Squeeze the juice from the pulp through the strainer. Set pulp aside - delicious with icecream!
• To reconstitute to a delicious drink, try 1 part cordial to 5 or 6 parts water. This will depend on how sweet you like your drinks.
• KEEP IN REFRIGERATOR.
• It makes 1.75 litres which will creat about 12 litres of drink.

BLACKBERRY CORDIAL

Steps:

• Combine the blackberries with water and spices in a medium saucepan, and bring just to boil. Reduce heat and cook on low for 30 minutes. Gently crush the berries against the side of the saucepan while it simmers. Without mashing the berries in the strainer, strain the berries through a fine sieve into a pyrex bowl. Add brown sugar and stir until dissolved. Set aside to cool.
• Stir in Cognac or Brandy and pour into bottles. Tightly seal the bottles and store in a cool dark place for about 2 weeks.