raspberry vinegar syrup

Amanda Hesser's "Recipe Redux" always intrigues, but I've never actually worked up the gumption to try one of the oldie-fash recipes she dredges up, often from the NYTimes' formidable vaults. But with the heat of our Florida summer showing no sign of waning, a new mix-in to my seltzer begged for my attention. I gathered up some end-of-season raspberries (and threw some frozen ones into the mix), sat around and waited awhile. After my three-day-macerate wait, I battled with cheesecloth (I'd say it ended in a draw), heaped in some sugar, and simmered a lazy-Sunday evening away.

I ended up with two pint-sized mason jars full of the piquant-sweet syrup, which I've been spooning into seltzer ever since. I plan to bring a jar to my girlfriends' house this weekend, where we will tote it to the beach, toss it into a plastic cup with some (ok, lots) semi-cheap "champagne," play bocce and try not to spill.

raspberry vinegar

adapted from 1900 New York Times recipe

1c. red wine vinegar

1 1/2 quarts fresh raspberries*

sugar

In a glass bowl (with a lid), combine raspberries and vinegar. Cover, and let macerate for three days. (Per Amanda Hesser's @reply to me, over which I reveled in foodie excitement, I let mine sit in the fridge.) 

Mush the raspberries in the bowl, then strain the liquid through a fine-mesh sieve lined with cheesecloth.  (I battled the cheesecloth — in trying to get every bit of raspberry goodness out, I squeezed a bit too hard and ended up with some raspberry seeds in my liquid. It hasn't kept me up at night.) Measure the juice, and pour it into a saucepan. To every 1 cup of juice, add 1 1/4 c. of sugar. Bring to a boil and gently simmer for 15 minutes. Let cool, then bottle (or jar). Keep refrigerated for up to 3 months, but I doubt mine will make it anywhere near that long.

*I used about half fresh berries and made up the rest with frozen, organic ones. Why? Because the fresh raspberries I didn't buy looked icky.