Sweet cicely schnapps

Sweet cicely schnapps - based on either roots, stems, leaves or unripe fruits from the sweet cicely plant - is sweet, spicy and highly aromatic.

It has a refreshing taste and aromas of something between anise and liquorice. Tastes almost like the wonderful Ouzo from Greece. It's green in colour, changing to warm golden after some storage.

Enjoy on its own as appetizer or after-dinner drink.

Or serve with chicken, veal, lamb, fish, shellfish, soups, vegetables, Greek Salads, cheese, cheese cakes, or the famous Greek dessert Baklava.

Or use the schnapps in soups, sauces, stews, salad dressings, herb butters, dips - or dishes, where you would normally use sweet cicely, chervil, or parsley.

Sweet cicely schnapps blends very well with...
basil schnapps · thyme schnapps · rosemary schnapps · stinging nettle schnapps.

Also, see how you can easily...
turn your sweet cicely schnapps into a liqueur.

Sweet cicely

Myrrhis odorata

Sweet cicely - also known as sweet chervil, British myrrh or Spanish chervil - is a beautiful perennial umbellifer with hollow, green stems. It grows to a hight of about one meter.

The plant has many long-stemmed, downy, and fern-like leaves. They are light green in colour, and have a wonderful sweet taste and anise-like flavour. Try to rub the leaves and experience the scent.

Bunches of small, white flowers are arranged in umbels on the top of the foliage. The flowers with their hight content of nectar are very attractive to bees.

The ripe, flavourful fruits are shiny, brown-black and unusually long for an umbellifer - about 15-25 millimeters. No other umbellifers have such long fruits.

Sweet cicely is native to Europe and has been grown as an medicinal plant and vegetable in monasteries.

Here in Denmark, sweet cicely grows wild in east Jutland (Jylland) and on some of our islands, but it's rarely found in other parts of the country.

It grows in moist, humus-rich soil in open woods, wood edges, hedgerows, grassy areas, and along roadsides.

Sweet cicely is a very popular, useful and decorative herb, and therefore very common in many kitchen gardens.

The sweet, fresh leaves - whole or chopped - are used in salads, salad dressings, soups, stews, mixed vegetables, and wine cups. The leaves are also used as a low calorie sweetener for fruits and desserts.

The roots can be cooked as a vegetable and eaten cold in salads. Also the unripe seeds can be added to salads.

More information about the sweet cicely plant

Recipe

In early summer, before bloom, you can use either the fresh leaves, stems, or roots to make this schnapps.

After bloom you should use the long, green, unripe fruits, which have stronger taste and flavours.

If you buy fresh sweet cicely, do 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.

Clean the leaves, stems, fruits, or roots carefully.

If wet, leave them to dry for a short period in the shadow - on paper towel.

For steeping, use a clean glass jar with tight-fitting lid, and a clear, unflavoured vodka - 40% alcohol content (80 proof).

Let steep in a dark place at room temperature, 18-20°C (64-68°F).

Note: Don't use dried leaves. Sweet cicely looses much of its aromatic volatile oil - and thereby its characteristic taste and flavours - as it dries.

Leaves or Stems

• Put 2 deciliter fresh leaves or stems in a clean glass jar.
• Add 35 centiliter vodka.
• Let steep for 1-3 days.
• Shake lightly and taste your infusion from time to time.

Green, unripe fruits

• Put a handful of green, unripe fruits - roughly chopped - in a clean glass jar
• Add 50 centiliter vodka.
• Let steep for 1-2 days.
• Shake lightly and taste it from time to time.

Roots

• Put a handful of roughly chopped roots in a clean glass jar.
• Add 50 centiliter vodka.
• Let steep for 1-2 weeks or more.
• Shake lightly and taste it from time to time.

Strain and filter whichever infusion you have made into a clean glass bottle or jar with tight-fitting lid.

Store (age) for at least 2 months in a dark place at room temperature before serving.

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 sweet cicely 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.