Look, I realise that of late I have shared a few alcoholic beverages on the blog (you can check it out here and here… and here), I’m not an alcoholic – stop looking at me like that, I’m not – but I do think that there is something so fun about making your own liqueurs. I tend to use them mainly in baking and for a twist on hot chocolate, but more than anything I gift them for Christmas in hampers, because who doesn’t love a hamper of delicious stuff (you can also check out my hamper guide here).
I thought I would share a trick for what to do with leftover pumpkin that doesn’t involve eating it, because we all end up sick of pumpkin pie and soup after Halloween, am I right?! There are only so many pumpkin recipes that can inspire you!
I found this recipe here and then made a few little tweaks to it to make it more my own.
Here’s my version of Pumpkin liqueur, the best way to use up leftover pumpkin after halloween!
- 1 cup water
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 cinnamon sticks
- 2 whole clove
- 1 inch of root ginger
- 1 vanilla pod, split
- 3 tablespoons pumpkin puree (which is just the inside of the pumpkin pureed after you have carved it – I highly recommend pureeing all your pumpkin leftovers and freezing them because then you can make muffins, pancakes, dips, liquors… anything really, I’ve even done tomato pasta sauces with a few scoops added because it sneaks in a bit more veg!)
- 1 cup vodka
Place the water and the sugar in a saucepan and heat over a low to medium heat until all the sugar has dissolved. Add your spices and pumpkin puree to the sugar water and simmer for 5-10 mins. Set aside to cool for 5-10 mins, add the vodka and pour into a sealed container. Make sure the container you use is air tight and then give everything a good shake. Put aside for at least 1 week, preferably until Christmas! Once you open you must refrigerate, and this will keep for 3 months after that.
Enjoy!
Harriet x
