Citrus Molasses
Molasses is typically made by cooking down or boiling sugar cane or
sugar beets until you have a thick syrup. In the Middle East, molasses
is made with pomegranates, grapes, and dates. So basically, it is a
thick, sugary syrup.
I found myself a few weeks ago with more citrus than I could reasonably
use. When you live in California, sometimes there is a profusion of citrus. I had
made orange juice ice cubes and frozen some lemon juice chips as well;
and the table was still piled high with grapefruit, tangelos and other
assorted citrus.
I began juicing and decided to make a citrus blend and
cook it down into a syrup.
As it cooled down and became thicker, I added a bit of sugar and a bit
of maple syrup. I added the sweeteners sparingly because I wanted the
syrup to retain some tang.
I started with about 3 1/2 quarts of juice and cooked it down to about a
third of that amount. I added a cup of sugar and a 1/2 cup
of maple syrup.
The result is a tangy sweet and sour sauce that I have used to:
1. Drizzle over stir fry vegetables
Mix with olive oil and tahini and drizzle over roasted vegetables
2. Mix a spoonful in drinks as a flavorful sweetener
3. Create a marinade for fish using equal parts of tahini, olive oil and
citrus molasses.
4. As an ingredient in salad dressing
I keep it in the refrigerator and have shared some with friends.
I have not yet used it in any dessert recipes, but I am quite certain
that it could be drizzled over ice cream or cheese cake for a delightful
burst of flavor.
Any fruit or fruit juice could be used to make a molasses. This simple flavorful syrup can retain quite a bit of pulp so you are using most of the fruit.
The drink pictured below was made with about 1 1/2 cups of fresh squeezed orange and lime juice, 1/3 cup of citrus molasses, and 3 cups water. It is light, aromatic and delicious, and it mixed well with champagne!
Where there is great love, there are always miracles. Willa Cather
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