A highly alcoholic condiment traditionally served over desserts.
Tutti Frutti
Tutti Frutti, a magical elixir, is a tradition in our family, always served with dessert after a weekend noonday meal. This was served to adults only, usually followed by a long nap. My grandmother and aunts spoke about it with reverence, in hushed tones. There was a mystique about Tutti Frutti that I never understood until I found the recipe in an old letter. Having inherited the family Tutti Frutti crock I decided to make it. The delicious tastes and smells that evolved from that crock over the year of fermenting were indeed sublime.
Ingredients
- 1 qt good brandy
- 1 cup fruit chopped or thinly sliced- added monthly
- 1 cup sugar- added monthly
- 1 gallon fermenting crock
Directions
Starting in January (really you can start any time) add 1 cup of a seasonal fresh fruit, citrus is usually readily available in winter, 1 qt brandy and 1 cup of sugar to a crock. Stir with a wooden spoon until mixed and the sugar dissolves. Cover with a lid or plastic wrap secured with a rubber band, cover that with a nylon stocking. Store in a cool dark place.
Every month for 10 months open the crock, add 1 cup of fruit and one cup of sugar, give it a stir and seal it back up. Use only seasonal fresh fruit such as kumquats, pineapples, oranges, lemons, limes, nectarines, strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, kiwi, gooseberries, peaches, apples, grapes, figs, cranberries, pears and plums. Write down what fruit you have added each month so as not to repeat. Do not use bananas. Thinly slice and remove the seeds from citrus and grapes, cut other fruits into ½ inch pieces.
On the 11th month after starting this, stir in one cup of currants and one cup of raisins, but no sugar. On the 12th month, transfer into sterile pint jars, adding a sprinkling of pecans to each jar if you like. No need to water bath them, just screw on the lids and store in a dark cool place for up to 6 months, one year if kept refrigerated.
- Tutti Frutti is a highly alcoholic condiment that is traditionally served over Ice cream, pudding, Brulees or cakes. My favorite use for it is to strain off the fruit and use the delicious liquid for the base for a hot Tutti Frutti Toddy, my drink of choice on a cold winter night. Bottle the Tutti Frutti in December and you can give it as holiday gifts.