In Trastevere there is an ancient pharmacy in Santa Maria della Scala. Still open to the public, it is full of stills and other seventeenth-century instruments that they used to make medicines. Some ancient “drugs” were extracts and infusions. Among these infusions we can include the first bitters, cordials, and liqueurs. Only later, with the advent of the Renaissance, did liqueur lose its original medicinal form and obtain that of a tonic after a meal.
In winter I buy pomegranates to make this fresh and spicy liqueur. To be served chilled.
Pomegranate liqueur
- Preparation time: 7 days
- Ingredients for 1 bottle
- Difficulty: Easy recipe
- Ingredients
- 1 cup (250 ml) of 90% pure alcohol
- The grains of 2 pomegranates
- 1 cinnamon berry
- 3 cloves
- For the syrup:
- 1 2/3 cup (400 ml) of water
- 1 ½ cup (350 grams) of sugar
- Instructions
- Infuse the pomegranate seeds in alcohol for 7 days together with the spices.
- Leave the jar in a dark, dry place and turn it upside down every day.
- After this time, prepare a syrup by mixing the sugar with the water in a saucepan until it is completely dissolved. Bring to a gentle boil and then turn off the heat and let it cool.
- Filter the pomegranates alcohol by passing it through a fine mesh strainer and add it to the syrup.
- Bottle after filtering the liqueur with a strainer covered with sterile gauze.
- Leave it in a dry and dark place for at least a month before consuming it.
Tips to ensure the success of the dish:
- To shell the pomegranate, you must first cut the upper cap and then cut the outer skin where the white membranes are so as to obtain cloves. Spread each clove with your fingers and the pomegranate will magically open like a flower. At this point it can easily be shelled.
- The syrup should not be cooked for long because otherwise the water evaporates and becomes too sweet.
