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Cranberry liqueur is popular for several reasons. First, there is taste. The homemade homemade drink strongly resembles the popular Finnish liqueur Lapponia. Secondly, making cranberry liqueur at home is quite simple, the process does not require special equipment and narrowly focused knowledge, simple things and ingredients are enough for it. Thirdly, cranberries contain many valuable micro and macro elements such as calcium, iodine, magnesium, iron, as well as a variety of antioxidants and vitamins. Since a small part of the beneficial properties of the berries remains after the preparation of homemade liqueur, it can be consumed in small portions for the prevention of diseases. And, finally, the preparation of such a drink can be called a variation of preparations for the winter, focused exclusively on adults.
Sweet cranberry liqueur
Some varieties of cranberry liqueur are adapted from popular spirits. Last but not least, their taste depends on the alcohol used: any strong alcohol is suitable for the preparation of liqueur, preferably if it does not have a pronounced taste, but this is not always possible. As a rule, they use vodka, but you can take moonshine and even medical alcohol. In some cases, brandy is used instead of vodka.
If the degree of the selected alcoholic beverage is too high, you can dilute it with a small amount of water to the desired strength. In general, the basic set of ingredients will be repeated from recipe to recipe - making a sweet cranberry liqueur usually requires cranberries, a liquor of choice, and granulated sugar. Sometimes water is added to the list to make syrup.
Before starting cooking, the berries are sorted out, removing rotten and spoiled ones. At the same time, initially slightly crumpled fruits are not substandard, and they can be safely used. Both fresh and frozen cranberries are suitable for cooking. Since frozen gives more juice, it is sometimes recommended to pre-freeze fresh berries.
So, to make a sweet liqueur at home, you need the following:
- 500 g cranberries;
- 500 g granulated sugar;
- 200 ml of water;
- 500 ml of vodka.
Prepare this way:
- The berries are washed and allowed to stand for a while.
- In a saucepan, combine water and sugar, make sugar syrup. After the syrup thickens, the pan is removed from the heat and allowed to cool to room temperature.
- Knead the berries with a pusher.Attention! Do not turn the berries and juice into a homogeneous puree - then it will be very difficult to remove the pulp.
- First the syrup is added to the crushed berries, and then the vodka. Stir.
- The container with the liqueur preparation is covered with a lid and moved to a cool dark place, where it is left for 25-30 days. Every day, the liquor is shaken, so it is better to choose a tight-fitting container for storage.
- After the drink is infused, it is filtered to remove the pulp and bottled.
Moonshine cranberry liqueur recipe
To make cranberry liqueur at home from moonshine, only double-distilled moonshine is used.
In principle, you can make liqueur from moonshine based on the previous recipe, but there are other ways.
So, you need the following ingredients:
- 300 g or two cups of cranberries;
- 1 liter of moonshine;
- 1.5 cups of sugar;
- 500 ml of water.
The amount of water and sugar is adjusted depending on the desired strength of the alcoholic beverage. If you need to reduce the strength to 30 degrees, the amount of water for the syrup is increased to 700 ml.
Preparation:
- The cranberries are washed and kneaded with a crush.
- Pour the berries with moonshine, cover the container with a tight-fitting lid and place in a cool, dark place for three weeks.
- During this time, the container is shaken daily.
- The present drink is filtered, removing the pulp and cloudy sediment.
- Boil the sugar syrup and let it cool.
- The tincture is poured into the syrup, gently stirred and poured into bottles.
Cranberry liqueur with cloves and cardamom
Technically, you can use any spice you like instead of cloves or cardamom. However, it is important not to overdo it with their quantity, so as not to kill the cranberry flavor.
To prepare liqueur according to this recipe, you will need:
- 500 g cranberries;
- 1 liter of vodka or moonshine;
- 500 g sugar;
- whole cloves;
- cardamom;
- cinnamon stick to taste.
Prepare cranberry liqueur as follows:
- Pre-sort and wash the berries, shake off the water from them, and then knead.
- Pour crushed cranberries with vodka, cover with a lid and put away in a dark place.
- Withstand for a week, shaking the container daily.
- After the expiration date, the drink is filtered (it is better to repeat the procedure twice).
- Put the saucepan on the fire, add granulated sugar.
- Heat over low heat, while constantly stirring and not allowing the liquid to boil. When the sugar is completely dissolved, remove the pan from the heat.
- Spices are wrapped in a gauze or cloth bag and dipped in warmed liquor for 10 minutes.
- Take out the spices, if necessary, filter the drink again, removing the remaining pulp.
- Bottled.
Homemade fortified cranberry liqueur
Required Ingredients:
- cranberries - 500 g;
- strong alcohol - 1 l;
- sugar - 500 g;
- spices - cardamom, cinnamon, cloves - to taste.
Prepare this recipe as follows.
- The cranberries are sorted out and washed thoroughly, then the excess liquid is shaken off and the berries are allowed to stand for a while.
- Then the berries are turned into a homogeneous mixture. To do this, you can use both mechanical manual tools such as a pusher, and a blender or meat grinder.
- Pour crushed cranberries with alcohol, close the container with a lid, and then put it in a dark place for 4–5 days.
- The liquor is shaken daily.
- Filter the drink and squeeze the juice from the berry mixture.
- Add sugar and cook, not allowing it to boil, until it is completely dissolved.
- Remove the liqueur from the heat and dip the spices into it in a cloth bag for 5-10 minutes.
- Then the drink is allowed to cool, it is filtered again and poured into prepared bottles.
Storage periods
The usual shelf life for cranberry liqueur is three years. As with infusing a drink, dark and cool places are best for long-term storage. At the same time, it is not necessary to store the drink in the refrigerator, there is usually enough space, isolated from direct sunlight and away from heaters.
The benefits and harms of cranberry liqueur
Despite the great popularity of this drink, one cannot speak of its unambiguous benefits. So, it will not work to get elements important for the body in large quantities when using liquor, since their content in the finished product is not so high. However, cranberry tincture can be used as an additional source of micronutrients and macronutrients.
For the body, cranberries are useful in that:
- the vitamin C contained in it has a positive effect on the condition of the skin, hair, bones, brain, etc .;
- vitamin B helps to strengthen the nervous system and improve vision;
- has an anti-inflammatory effect, which means it can be used as a medicine for colds;
- it contains iron, so eating cranberries is useful for anemia;
- normalizes acid-base balance.
Despite the fact that the list of useful properties of cranberries is not limited to those listed above, it is not worth using liquor as a medicine for two reasons. Firstly, the beneficial properties of the berry are not fully transferred to the drink. Secondly, if you overdo it with the amount of drink, all the possible benefits for the body will be neutralized by the harm that alcohol brings - that is, the destruction of brain cells, possible poisoning of the body, etc.
Conclusion
Homemade cranberry liqueur is popular due to its excellent taste and ease of preparation, and the technology of creation and the recipe of the drink can differ significantly. The taste shades of the finished drink depend on the selected recipe, as well as used or unused spices.
