Cordially Yours

Since we're smack dab in the middle of berry season...raspberry and blackberry that it...I though I'd share one of our favorite family recipes, Grandma J's Raspberry Cordial. It takes about 11 days to make, but you'll be able to enjoy many many more than 11 days of sipping goodness for this "small" time investment. Well, unless you'll like my family and then you'll want to make more than one batch.

For those who aren't familiar with what a cordial is, it's basically the same as a liqueur, but cordials were originally produced and used for medicinal purposes.  They were alcohol-based concoctions in which herbs, fruits and spices were steeped.  Taken in small doses they were considered to have revitalizing properties which were good for the heart, body and spirit.  Eventually they were enjoyed for their intoxicating effects and became a social drink (primarily good for the soul).

There's a lot of room for experimentation with this, but here is the basic recipe that got it all started.

Grandma J's Raspberry Cordial

1 quart fresh or frozen raspberries
1 quart brandy
1 quart sugar

Put berries into a glass container.  Add sugar and brandy.  Mix thoroughly.

For the first 5 days, mix or shake thoroughly each day.
For the next 5 days, let the mixture sit still.

On day 11, drain mixture through cheese cloth.

Store in glass bottles and refrigerate.

It's sip-tastic!

NOTES

You can use blackberries instead of raspberries or combine them together.  We use fresh frozen berries.  You wash the fresh berries, pat them dry and then spread them out on a cookie sheet and put it in the freezer.  Once frozen, you can put them in a bag or container together.  They tend to keep much better if given air and room to freeze individually before grouping.

You can substitute gin or vodka for the brandy.  I made a blackberry cordial using vanilla vodka and a raspberry using plain vodka that turned out just fine.

When I strain mine, I put the cheese cloth in a metal strainer which helps to catch any cheese cloth runover.

I haven't found a glass container large enough to hold 96 oz of anything, but because it's a one-to-one ratio for the ingredients, I just scale them down to fit into the jars I do have.

I found my 72 oz. and 84 oz. lidded glass jars at Home Goods for $7-9 each.  I like them because they have the screw on lids (less change of spillage) and are tall and thin so don't take up as much space on the counter.

The cordial will probably be a lot stronger than you expect it to be.  But considering you start out with alcohol, and then have both fruit and sugar basically fermenting in it for over a week, it'll sneak up on you.  For those you are Anne of Green Gables fans, now you know why Diana Barry got so snockered on just a few glasses.