Neko-Chan
Chillin' In The Garden
I have a wild rose in the back yard. It had a bazillion rosehips on it last year, so I picked as many as I could reach. They came opn at a strange time of year, summer time I think, so I had no hope of waiting for the first frost before they were ruined. I picked them when they started getting soft and dark red, and froze them until I had enough to work with. For jam or cordial or wine, you are going to want kilos of them (I picked a total of 2 kilos, which is like, 4 or 5 pounds). If you jsut have a few, you can dry them for teas as you wanted. Have a recipe:
Rosehip Cordial
Made from ripe red wild rose hips, this refreshing drink is both sweet and
tangy. Add some to chilled water for a refreshing drink, drizzle it over bits of cake, or take it straight as a winter pick-me-up. An excellent way to use the bounty of nature.
700 g ripe red rose hips
1 L boiling water
400 mL water
1+1/3 cup of sugar
Method:
Top and tail the rose hips and chop them roughly.
Add the rose hips to the boiling water in a saucepan and boil for 5-10 minutes. Allow it to cool and then strain through muslin, twice if possible.
Add the remaining water to the pulp and boil again for five minutes. Strain as before. Return the liquid to the rinsed saucepan and boil until reduced to 1 liter. Stir in the sugar to make sure that it is dissolved.
Leave to cool before transferring it to sterilized bottles. Store in a cool place.
Notes:
This recipe works well halved: 350g rose hips, 1/2 L boiling water, 200 mL water, 2/3 cup sugar. The straining bag can be squeezed to extract remaining liquid. Cook remaining syrup until it lightly coasts a spoon, like thin cough syrup. Wild rose hips are the best to use. Pick them when they are soft and red and come off the plant easily. Make sure first that your source of rose hips is not sprayed with chemicals.
Rosehip Cordial
Made from ripe red wild rose hips, this refreshing drink is both sweet and
tangy. Add some to chilled water for a refreshing drink, drizzle it over bits of cake, or take it straight as a winter pick-me-up. An excellent way to use the bounty of nature.
700 g ripe red rose hips
1 L boiling water
400 mL water
1+1/3 cup of sugar
Method:
Top and tail the rose hips and chop them roughly.
Add the rose hips to the boiling water in a saucepan and boil for 5-10 minutes. Allow it to cool and then strain through muslin, twice if possible.
Add the remaining water to the pulp and boil again for five minutes. Strain as before. Return the liquid to the rinsed saucepan and boil until reduced to 1 liter. Stir in the sugar to make sure that it is dissolved.
Leave to cool before transferring it to sterilized bottles. Store in a cool place.
Notes:
This recipe works well halved: 350g rose hips, 1/2 L boiling water, 200 mL water, 2/3 cup sugar. The straining bag can be squeezed to extract remaining liquid. Cook remaining syrup until it lightly coasts a spoon, like thin cough syrup. Wild rose hips are the best to use. Pick them when they are soft and red and come off the plant easily. Make sure first that your source of rose hips is not sprayed with chemicals.
