Red Currant Syrup
In our last book club (post coming soon!) I served Red Currants. It turns out our local grocery store only sold them in 4 cup flats, so when my husband went to the store, that’s what he bought. We nibbled on them in book club, but I still had a lot of them left.
My first thought was to make a syrup or jam out of them. Currants have a lot of seeds, so I realized a syrup made with the Currant juice was the better bet! Red Currants have a wonderful tart and refreshing flavor. They taste kind of like a cross between a raspberry and a green grape.
To get the juice out of the berries, we are going to throw them in the food processor. You could also use a blender, but f you have a lot of berries you may have to do it in batches. We’ll process them until they are broken down and liquid. I got a little impatient when picking them all off their stems, so you’ll notice there were a few stems in there. It’s no big deal, since we are food processing them. Just make sure you get most of the berries off the stems.
Strain the juice through a fine mesh strainer into a saucepan. There are lot of seeds, so you’ll want to press the mixture and move it around with a rubber spatula to get all of the juice through.
Now add sugar and salt to the saucepan and put it over medium heat. We’re going to cook this mixture until the sugar dissolves and the juice thickens slightly. This should take about 10 minutes. Once the sugar is dissolved, taste the syrup (be careful- it’ll be really hot!). You may want to add more sugar depending on how sweet your berries are. If so, let that additional sugar dissolve and cook the mixture to your desired thickness. There will be some foam on the top. I chose to skim that off. It doesn’t hurt anything if you leave it, I just thought the syrup looked nicer without it.
Pour the syrup into a jar or Tupperware container. This recipe should make about a pint of syrup. Let the syrup cool completely before covering with a lid. This syrup should last 2 weeks if stored in the fridge.
This syrup has so many wonderful purposes:
- Poured over ice cream
- A topping for waffles or pancakes
- Mixed into sparkling water for a refreshing soda
- On top of your favorite baked treat
- As a flavoring in a cocktail (more to come on this in the near future!)
Let me know in the comments how you plan to use it. How else have you used Red Currants?
Save RecipeIngredients
- 4 cups red currants
- 1 cup sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Process the berries in a food processor or blender until they were broken down and liquid.
- Strain the juice through a fine mesh strainer into a saucepan. Press the mixture and move it around with a rubber spatula to get all of the juice through.
- Add sugar and salt to the saucepan and put it over medium heat. Cook until the sugar dissolves and the juice thickens slightly. This should take about 10 minutes. Taste and adjust for sweetness. If adding more sugar, let it dissolve and cook the mixture to your desired thickness. Skim the foam off the top.
- Pour the syrup into a jar or Tupperware container. This recipe should make about a pint of syrup and will last in the fridge up to 2 weeks. Let the syrup cool completely before covering with a lid.