In the continuing saga of summer strawberries (strawberry jam, strawberry oatmeal, chocolate tort with strawberries, etc.), today I made some homemade strawberry basil soda. And ate it with some fennel, orange shortbread.
4-5 cups (~1 pound) strawberries, washed and trimmed
Juice of 1/2 lemon
3/4 cup loosely packed basil leaves, washed
1 cup sugar
Carbonated water
1. Using a blender, puree strawberries until smooth.
2. Using a cheesecloth or fine sieve, squeeze strawberry juice into a bowl. Discard pulp and seeds. This should yield about 1 - 1 1/2 cups of pure juice.
3. In a sauce pan, add strawberry juice to lemon juice, whole basil, and sugar.
4. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer for 5 minutes. This yields a simple syrup.
5. Remove from heat and let cool for five minutes.
6. Using a sieve or a strainer, strain simple syrup. Discard solids (basil).
7. To serve, add 2 tablespoons of simple syrup to a full (8 oz) glass of carbonated water, taste, and add more syrup according to taste. Garnish with lemon slices and basil.
Adapted slightly from The Kitchn.
No comments:
Post a Comment