Miraculix – Schnapps

Ingredients for 1 servings:

• 5 prunes (dried plums)
• 5 apricots, dried
• 10 raisins
• 1 handful of apple peels, dried or apple rings
• clove(s), 3-5
• 1 stalk(s) cinnamon
• Orange(s) peel, untreated, a small piece
• 1 liter of schnapps (grain brandy, 40%)
• 250 ml water, possibly sugar solution

Instructions

Working time approx. 15 minutes; Total time approx. 15 minutes

This liqueur is one of the traditional home recipes from our great-great-great-grandmothers’ cookbooks. It can still sometimes be found in handwritten cookbooks under very personal names such as “Hausschnaps” (House Liquor) or “Mein Likör” (My Liqueur). Alcohol of all kinds, from wine to brandy, was flavored with dried fruits to give it a full-bodied taste. Depending on the region, season, and financial circumstances, raisins, prunes, dried apple peels, dried cherries, or dried apricots were added to the alcohol and left to infuse for several days, sometimes even weeks. Imported spices such as cinnamon, cloves, or vanilla, due to their high price, have only recently been added to the “Hausliqueur” (house liqueur). Today, when all the basic ingredients are available to us in the best quality and at affordable prices, variations of these old “emergency recipes” always result in products of the highest quality and therefore invite extensive experimentation. Make sure you get unsulfured dried fruit for the infusion. Place the fruit and spices in a glass or ceramic infusion vessel, pour over the alcohol, seal tightly, and leave to infuse for three weeks in a warm place, but not in direct sunlight. Strain the infusion, add 250 ml of water, and mix well. Depending on your taste, you can then refine it with a sugar solution, e.g., 150 g of sugar and 150 ml of water. Filter the liqueur, pour into bottles, and seal tightly. It’s ready to drink immediately. Variation: Wine infused with dried fruit for a few days also tastes sweet and wonderful. Here, about 10 dried fruits are enough for one liter of wine. However, you should not infuse lemon or orange peel in wine.