Lemon balm schnapps

Lemon balm schnapps - based on fresh lemon balm leaves - is a wonderful schnapps.

Fresh with a mildly acid taste of lemon and honey-like fragrance.

Serve with caviar, crayfish, gravlax, salmon, herring, chicken, lamb and veal.

Goes very well also with cheese, salads, omelettes, cheese cakes and desserts.

Or use the schnapps in teas, barbecue sauces, soups, stews - or any other dish, salad dressing, herb butter, dip, etc., where you would normally use this aromatic herb.

Lemon balm schnapps blends very well with...
peppermint schnapps · blackberry schnapps · tarragon schnapps · plum schnapps · sea buckthorn schnapps · apricot schnapps · almond schnapps.

Also, see how you can easily...
turn your lemon balm schnapps into a liqueur.

Lemon balm

Lemon balm - also known as melissa - is a bushy, perennial herb belonging to the mint family.

It has square stems, soft and intensely lemon-scented leaves and small, white or pale yellow flowers growing in clusters.

The plant is native to Southern Europe and Northern Africa.

Today it grows wild in most countries and is a common herb in many kitchen gardens.

Lemon balm is rich in antioxidants.

The lemon-scented leaves are widely used in cooking, to flavour salads, soups, sauces, vinegars and fish.

Oil from the plant is used in antiaging products, dietary supplements, tinctures and ointments.

Lemon balm is also very popular as an ingredient in herb teas.

And it's one of the main ingredients in liqueurs such as the French Benedictine and Chartreuse.

Lemon balm attracts bees and was originally grown as a bee plant - if you rub an empty beehive with the leaves it will attract new "tenants".

More information about the lemon balm plant

Recipe

For best result, use fresh lemon balm leaves.

Pick them before blooming and in the morning after the dew has disappeared. That's when they are most aromatic.

If you buy fresh lemon balm make sure the plant is really fresh - organic if possible - and free from spots and insect damage.

Handle the plant with care - fresh herbs bruise easily - and use the leaves as soon as possible to get the most flavour and aroma into your schnapps.

You can use dried or frozen leaves - but you get a better result if you use fresh leaves.

Direction:

• Clean the leaves carefully - but only if necessary.
• If wet - leave them to dry for a short period in the shadow - on paper towel.
• Put 25-30 leaves in a clean glass jar with tight-fitting lid.
• Cover with 50 centiliter clear, unflavoured vodka - 40% alcohol content (80 proof).
• Let steep for 48 hours in a dark place at room temperature,
  18-20°C (64-68°F).
• Shake lightly and taste it from time to time.
• Strain and filter your infusion into a clean glass bottle or jar with tight-fitting lid.

You can serve your lemon balm schnapps after it has settled for a couple of days.

But some storage (aging) will make it even better. Taste it from time to time to find out. Remember to store in a dark place at room temperature.

Note: If for some reason you are not satisfied with your infusion, there are ways to adjust both taste and flavours - click here to see how.

Serve your lemon balm schnapps at room temperature in suitable glasses. And remember to keep your schnapps bottle tightly closed and in a dark place before and between servings.