Pumpkin pouring according to this recipe is remembered for honey-melon notes in aroma and taste, which appear due to proper baking in the oven, while honey itself is not used. The taste of the drink is soft, and alcohol tones are practically absent. The color depends on the shade of the pulp.
Ripe pumpkin of any variety will do, the more fragrant and juicy, the better. It is important that there are no blackened, rotten and moldy parts that can spoil the drink. As an alcohol base, you can take store-bought vodka, ethyl alcohol diluted with water, purified moonshine (preferably double distillation) or cognac. In the latter case, notes of barrel aging will appear in the pumpkin liqueur.
pumpkin liqueur recipe
Ingredients:
- pumpkin – 0,5 kg;
- vodka (alcohol 40-45%, moonshine) – 1,5 l;
- lemon juice – from half the fruit;
- cloves – 1 bud;
- sugar – 150 g + to taste.
If the pumpkin is too big, bake only one half. Clove slightly enriches the aroma, and lemon juice gives a barely noticeable sourness.
Preparation
1. Cut the pumpkin into 2 parts. Remove pits and soft core. Cut off the stalk (the area where the fruit is attached to the stem of the plant) and the place on the opposite side where the flower was.
2. Pour sugar into the inner cavity of the pumpkin. If the volume of the recess is not enough, cut off more pulp.
3. Place the pumpkin filled with sugar on a dry baking sheet and put in the oven, heated to 200 ° C. Bake for 25-30 minutes until a characteristic caramel smell appears. It is important to ensure that the pumpkin is reddened, but not burnt.
4. Remove the pumpkin from the oven (the sugar will melt, and there will be liquid in the recess), cool to room temperature.
5. Pour the liquid part (melted sugar with pumpkin juice) into a container for infusion – a glass jar. Cut the pumpkin itself into pieces of 5-6 cm and also put in a jar.
6. Add cloves and squeeze lemon juice. Pour in the alcohol base.
7. Close the container with a lid. Shake. Leave for 30 days in a dark place at room temperature. Shake every 3-4 days.
8. Strain the finished infusion through 2-3 layers of gauze. Squeeze the pulp dry.
9. Taste the liquid part, if desired, additionally sweeten with sugar or dilute with water to reduce the strength.
10. Pour the pumpkin liqueur into a glass bottle or jar. Close hermetically. Leave in the refrigerator for 3-5 days until the precipitation.
11. Drain the liquor through a tube into another container, being careful not to touch the sediment at the bottom. Additionally, you can filter through cotton wool or a coffee filter.
12. Pour the drink into bottles for storage and close tightly. Before tasting, it is advisable to leave the liqueur for 2-3 weeks in a cool, dark place to age and stabilize the taste.
Away from direct sunlight, the shelf life of homemade pumpkin liqueur is up to 3 years. Fortress – 28-30% vol.
