The "Queen" cookery books: Pickles and Preserves

Juniper berries make a very good liqueur also, though they are made in less heroic quantities ; fib. of berries being infused for a fortnight in two quarts of brandy with 6oz. of loaf sugar, closely stoppered down, then strained off, filtered, bottled, and corked closely. Vanderhum (Old Dutch recipe). — For every quart of good brandy allow a good dessertspoonful of bruised (not ground) cinnamon, four or five cloves, two tablespoonfuls of finely pared Tangerine orange rind (narte-rind) and a grate of nutmeg. Mix all these well together and let them infuse for a month to extract all the flavour possible, then boil some clear, brown crystallised (cane) sugar to a thick rich syrup (putting |lb. of sugar to the quart of brandy) ; add a pint of this syrup and a wineglassful of best rum to each quart of brandy, &c., and let it all stand together for three weeks ; then strain off carefully, filtering it if necessary, and bottle. The brandy and rum used for this must be of really good quality, especially the rum, as this mellows the whole. Some people use sugar- candy instead of the sugar, but this is a matter of taste. At the Cape, where this liqueur is made in large quantities, it is put into a cask after the syrup is added, a stiffly whisked white of egg being laid in lightly at the top for each gallon of liqueur, to clear it, and at the end of three weeks it is bottled off. Vanilla Liqueur ( Creme de vanille). — Dissolve 21b. lOoz. of best loaf sugar broken up small in three pints of filtered water (this liqueur is so delicate it is well worth using distilled water for it) ; when this has boiled up once, pour it boiling on to three drachms of stick vanilla cut in pieces, and half a grain of amber. When this is quite cold add to it three pints of good brandy, cover down closely, and let it infuse for six days ; then colour with a little prepared cochineal, filter, bottle, cork tightly, and seal. Vespetro. — Put into a jar 1oz. each of angelica seeds, anise seed, coriander seed, carraway seed, and fennel seed; put with it 31b. crushed sugar-candy, and one gallon of brandy, and infuse closely covered for six weeks, then filter and bottle off. Walnut Liqueur. — Gather the nuts in June or July (when the shells are still soft), then put into a large wide-mouthed bottle about thirty green walnuts, thirty cloves, a pinch of vanilla, or cinnamon, and one and a half pints of spirit ; cork down closely and stand the bottle in the sun for five or six weeks, shaking- it daily, to soak the fruit thoroughly. Now strain well and make a syrup with the liquor strained from the nuts, lflb. loaf sugar, a full half pint of water, and about a gill more spirit, or brandy. Let this stand till nearly cold, then filter, bottle, cork, and seal, and keep for at least six months in an even temperature. It is an improvement to either cut up or prick the nuts before adding them to the brandy, and, if preferred, crushed sugar-candy can be used instead of sugar. In G-ermany Nuss Schnapps (Walnut gin) is made in exactly the same way, only using B ollands for the spirit, and omitting the sugar. This liqueur which should be of a faint green, is considered a great stomachic in Germany.