Spiced & Boozy Apricots

Somebody once told me that making cocktails was like cooking with Alcohol. For example: when the measurements are wrong your cake doesn't rise and if you put too much olive brine in a dirty martini the result is hideous. I like the idea that cooking and cocktail making can be just as intricate.

I love being in the kitchen almost as much as I love being behind a bar, and there’s nothing I like more than serving up tasty morsels for my friends. 

I’m not as adventurous or quite as skilled as my housemates, but it should be noted that we all LOVE to cook, and we LOVE to eat and we LOVE to drink. So what’s a lady to do? Combine them all! 

My last bartending gig was a year and a half at a beautiful venue called Laruche. Whilst working there I came to appreciate the amazing things that alcohol can do to compliment a good meal, and I'm not talking just a nice glass of wine. I’m talking sherry glazed quail and Jagermeister ice cream. Om nom nom!

This time of year our house becomes a preserving factory. Relish, jam, chutney, mayo and the list will go on and on. I decided to try preserving whole apricots in rum and sugar with a few spices mixed in too. They turned out great! 

Here is the recipe so you can try it at home too. Not a rum fan? That’s cool.. You can try a plethora of other alcohol, and even different fruits. My only advice is to make sure the alcohol content is high in whatever you use (> 30%) so the fruit doesn’t expire early.

Try this or your own combo. Different spices, fruits, types of sugar.. the possibilities are endless (and delicious!).

Ingredients

1kg fresh apricots (pitted)

2 measures white sugar (I used a teacup, but you know, a measuring cup will do!) 

2 measures water

Peel of ¼ of a lemon

1 cinnamon quill

4 cloves

10 black peppercorns

3 bay leaves (dried) or 1 fresh leaf

4 dashes Angostura Orange bitters

100ml dark rum (I've used Havana Club Añejo Reserva)

Method

1. Pit your apricots. I have added a little tutorial here. If you can't master it, just cut them in half and cut your cooking time in half.

2. Combine water and sugar and bring to the boil, add pitted apricots, bitters and spices and turn down to simmer for 10 minutes.

3. Remove apricots from liquid and leave on a plate to cool. Add rum to boiling mixture and simmer for a further 10 minutes. Leave in pot to cool.

4. Place apricots in a sterile jar with cinnamon, bay leaves, pepper, lemon peel and cloves. 

5. Fill with cooled liquid from pot, straining through cheese cloth to keep it clear.

Refrigerate & enjoy over ice cream, with cheese or maybe even in a pie.. YUUUUUUUM!!

More boozy cooking adventures coming soon x