Pom Rum - Pomegranate Rum Recipe

Pomegranates are a fruit, so you can drink pomegranate rum and lemonade safe in the knowledge you're getting 1 of your 5 a day!

I became obsessed with pomegranate seeds after falling in love with the Ottolenghi Jerusalem book. On salads, on slow cooked shoulder of lamb, mixed through cous cous, in kachumber, made into a salsa, scattered over starters.

What's not to love about pomegranates? They're full of vitamin A, C and E, Iron and anti oxidants. They're healthy living, taste great, make a great garnish and they're also helping Afghan farmers to switch from growing opium poppies as the demand for pomegranates is getting a great price for farmers.

This pomegranate rum came about on a Monday - after clearing up weekend returns from dinner parties. What to do with the leftover pomegranate seeds? That is before I could found out you can freeze pomegranate seeds.

After my raspberry whisky, blackberry vodka and blueberry gin this seemed like a good combination. There was always rum lying around in the store from making raspberry mojito sorbet.

This mixes very well with lemonade as a long drink with a little ice - refreshing on a summer's night. Crunch the seeds as you drink.

Pomegranate Rum Recipe

750ml Rum - spiced
200g Pomegranate seeds (see how to remove in the cordial recipe below)
100g White caster sugar

Put these 3 things in a large enough jar or plastic container. Seal the top well, then shake to combine the sugar. Place in the fridge and shake again every day. After 7 days it should be ready.
You need to keep this in the fridge as the pomegranate seeds will start to ferment otherwise (as I once found out). Will last in the fridge for months, theoretically, but it's so nice there's not much chance of that.

Careful how much you drink! This is the morning after the night before at a charity ball - looks like someone took the tablecloth with them!

Another guest at the same event as above had clearly had a few and modified a napkin into a hat. 

For a non alcoholic version you can make a pomegranate cordial by dropping the pomegranate seeds in hot sugar syrup.

Non Alcoholic Pommegranate Cordial 

After trying the soft Korean drinks which have bits of rice or jelly in, I'm a fan of drinks with bits. That's what I was going for with the pomegranate cordial below - you crunch the seeds as you drink. You probably want ice in there too (didn't have any that day - the freezer was full of food instead).

Non alcoholic pomegranate cordial

Pomegranate Cordial Recipe

250ml Water

250ml White sugar - caster or granulated

2 Pomegranates

1. Pummel your pomegranates and cut them in half. Bash the base with a large metal cooking spoon and the seeds drop out. Wear an apron, unless you want to wear some pomegranate juice. 
2. Remove pith from the seeds. 
3. Place the sugar and water in a pan with the pomegranate seeds. Heat gently till the sugar dissolves. Keep on a low simmer for 10 minutes. The water should reduce slightly and some of the pomegranate seeds should burst to release their juice. 
4. You need to keep this in the fridge as the pomegranate seeds will start to ferment otherwise (as I once found out). Will last in the fridge for 2 weeks, theoretically, but it's so nice there's not much chance of that.
5. To serve dilute like squash with water, sparkling water, lemonade or tonic water

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2014 A to Z Blogging Challenge - E is for Elderflowers - Elderflower cordial recipe & elderflower recipe roundup

I look forward to the new elderflower season like some look forward to the new football season!

Elderflower haul - last of the season 2007

Round here there are elderflowers growing everywhere from May - June: such a short season. But if you're clever the season extends - if you know the microclimates. Within a 20 mile radius the season changes by a few weeks depending on microclimate & land height. There's a secret place I picked the ones above when all the others everywhere had finished.
Don't pick directly after rain
Same as berries don't pick directly after rain - it takes away all the flavour and because they're wet they go off much faster. As I was driving to pick these I was beating the rain clouds in the distance. It just started raining as I was finishing picking, so I walked back in the rain. Tell you what though - smelled so amazing as I drove back - nature's perfume! Another time I stopped in the middle of a road near Bath at 11pm at night with the van lights lighting the elderflower crop that I was harvesting... not sure what the odd driver that went past must have thought!......

Discolouration
Elderflowers discolour (go brown) with age & also when cooking. Add lemon as I did with the elderflower liqueur below or citric acid to avoid the discolouration.

Storage
The elderflower season is so short! That's why we make cordial, liqueur, sorbet, etc. But you can also make the elderflower poaching liquor that I use for the elderflower poached chicken & salmon below and freeze that in batches to use over the following summer months.

Elderflower liqueur - you can use gin or vodka as a base. Go on try it! 

Elderflower cordial recipe

This is a ancient recipe from my friend's recipe vault - many times tested and approved!

20 Elderflower heads

2 kg Sugar

1 litre boiling water

80g Citric acid

2 lemons & 1 orange zested and sliced

1. Add sugar to the boiling water and stir till dissolved.

2. Add lemon and orange zest and slices.

3. Place elderflowers into a deep container. Pour over the sugar/ lemon/ orange mix.

4. Cover and leave for at least 12 hours.

5. Sieve and strain through muslin bag to clarify. Pour into sterilised bottle. 

6. Place in a very safe place that nobody else knows about - or they won't last long!

Elderflower roundup

Elderflower turkish delight

Use the elderflower cordial above to make this turkish delight. But put the cordial in at the beginning not the end like the first time I made it - it sets firmer this way!

Chicken poached in elderflower - a Broadway classic from 2007. We have also often done a similar version with salmon. 

Elderflower and prosecco jelly

A popular choice on the assiette of dessert:

Assiette of desserts from 8 days ago with elderflower and prosecco jelly centre stage

Elderflower liqueur 

This particular one was a 2009 vintage - definitely time to make it again!

Elderflower fritters! 
Here's a link to these. I made them at one of her supper clubs I was helping at - literally walked out of the front door to pick the elderflowers and back in the kitchen to fry them off - couldn't be fresher!

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Elderflowers

Elderflowers - the english hedgrow's strongest perfume.

The months worth of rain would fall in the next 36 hours they said on the radio, so I knew the elderflowers had to picked right then, before the rains came. The trouble with food season is they're so short. Asparagus came and went again so quickly this year - again I picked up the last of the crop from Bangrove Farm near Teddington. A walk down the river from my house confirmed the worst - the elderflowers had all gone over and berries were starting to emerge. That's the problem with microclimates. There was one chance left though - the hills around Snowshill, everything blooms/ fruits later. Here I found laden elderflower trees and picked a bumper crop. Here they are before soaking in cold water in the fridge for a couple of days.

This liquor will then be used to make the elderflower poached chicken photographed in an earlier entry, and also elderflower sorbet, 'champagne' and cordial.

Ref: Chicken poached in wild elderflower

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