Friday, September 4, 2009

Rose Hip Syrup

We are surrounded by wild roses, rosa rugosa, here at the cottage, and I love rose hip tea, so I decided to gather rose hips yesterday.  I wasn't sure about proportions for making the tea, so I looked up recipes online, and I found the most wonderful information and recipes in an article by Gail Butler for Backwoods Home Magazine.
A relative of apples, roses create these gorgeous fruits, the hips, that are packed with vitamin C and that have skins tasting much like apple skins.  They are edible, but they taste much better when you use them for making teas, syrups, jellies, and even soups.  
Gail's article inspired me to try making rose hip syrup.  It's incredibly simple to do.  After gathering the ripe hips (I just use a good pair of kitchen scissors), wash thoroughly and pick through them, removing any blemished hips.  Put them in a saucepan and fill with enough water to just cover the hips.  Bring to a boil, then turn down the heat and simmer for about fifteen minutes.  Strain the liquid through a sieve into a bowl, pressing the hips gently with a spoon.  
You can discard the hips at this point, or add them to your compost.  Gail says that chickens love to eat them, too!  I don't have a compost here, so I had to discard mine, but I included a photo of the cooked hips above because they are just so pretty!  
You're left with a gorgeous, pinky-golden liquid, which you can now drink as tea with a little honey or make into syrup.  I made mine into syrup by adding one part honey to three parts rose hip liquid.  I cooked it to dissolve the honey and thicken slightly.  It's not a thick syrup, so you don't need to cook it for long.  Once cooled, pour into a storage container and pop it in the fridge where it will keep for a couple of weeks.  Delicious!
This morning I made whole wheat banana pancakes with rose hip syrup.
Perfectly ripe bananas.  My dream food.

The owners of the cottage where we're staying have this tiny pitcher (even smaller than a typical creamer) which seems custom-made for the rose hip syrup.  How did they know?    
Gail says the syrup is perfect on ice cream as well.  
Guess I'll be forced to try that, too!

13 comments:

  1. Rose Hip Syrup...oh, I love this...Thank you, Gigi! :o) Happy Weekend ((HUGS))

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  2. OH My word! Does that look good? I haven't had breakfast yet. Those banana pancakes look so so good! :)

    Have a lovely weekend!

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  3. that is real abundant living! what a gorgeous breakfast. I could eat banana cakes all day and that syrup looks like it is made for the gods.

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  4. Well, the pancakes look wonderful. I'm not sure I would like the syrup, but I certainly enjoyed the images and words you used to describe the process. I saw your link on another blog, and I'm glad I did. I'll be back often!

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  5. Hold that thought I'll be right over.... okay it might take me a while. That looks so delicious and you are so wonderful thinking to make these things wow.
    xoxo

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  6. Thanks, friends! I know the syrup seems a bit odd, but it is actually yummy. DJA, I wish I could fly you over here right now! When will someone invent teleportation?

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  7. Now I will just have to try that...if I can find enough rose hips!...It looks delicious and rose hips are so good for you.

    The photos are beautiful... I have been enjoying lots of photos of food on blue in blogs today:)

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  8. oh my gosh ... you were right! we were on the same wavelength again! isn't it absolutely wonderful that those beautifully fragrant wild roses and then their 'hips' can be made into heavenly tea ... AND divine syrup! i truly had never thought about making the hips into syrup, but of course! you are such a smart cookie ... or should i say banana pancake ~ what a treat you prepared!
    all that glorious sun beaming in while you work ~ perfect in every way ... beautifully captured as always!
    you always bring smiles,
    prairiegirl xo

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  9. Walking amongst the roses, collecting hips, gentle stroll back to the cottage, checking out recipes, wandering into the kitchen, making syrup and having it with banana pancakes for breakfast...could this be anymore perfect?? Wish I was there! Loving these posts Gigi!

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  10. Oh how lovely. I want to have breakfast at your house.

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  11. Your pix are wonderful! I live in Central/Northern Saskatchewan with lots of wild roses. I'm on way to pick rosehips - 'tis the season! It sounds like you have a wonderul, wholistic lifestyle. It's the only way!

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  12. My youngest son and I have just come in with another basket of rosehips and the plan to make syrup of them. We googled for rosehip syrup with honey and found your delightful blog. Will take some time later to read more...off to make our syrup. Thanks for the details.

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