Rosemary and Citrus Cordial

This recipe for rosemary and citrus cordial is adapted from page 26 of the April 2023 edition of Tesco’s magazine.

Ingredients

• 1 red grapefruit, scrubbed
• 3 lemons, scrubbed
• ¼ cup (20 g/0.7 oz) rosemary
• 6 cm (2.4 in) piece ginger, sliced thinly
• ⅔ cup (150 g/5.3 oz) superfine sugar
• 1 cup (250 ml/8.5 fl oz) water
• Fizzy water (optional)
• Whiskey (optional)

Procedure

1. Using a peeler, remove long strips of peel from grapefruit and 2 of lemons. Be careful not to remove any of white pith.
2. Put the peels into a saucepan. Juice the lemons and grapefruit, and add the juice to the pan.
3. Using a rolling pin, roll over the rosemary sprigs a few times on a chopping board to release the oils.
4. Add the rosemary to the pan with ginger, sugar, and water.
5. Heat for 5 minutes over a low-medium heat, stirring occasionally, to dissolve the sugar.
6. Reduce the heat to low and cook for 15 minutes until you get a slightly thick syrup. Leave it to cool, then use immediately or chill overnight to develop the flavors.
7. Strain the cordial syrup through a sieve into a bowl or jug. Transfer to a bottle.
8. To use, mix 1–2 tablespoons of cordial into ⅔ cup (160 ml/5.4 US fl oz) of fizzy water to make a soda, or add to boiling water with 2 tablespoons of whiskey to make a hot toddy.