SPICED RUM

Read on for my recipe for spiced rum.

A reader recently emailed asking for a good recipe for Spiced Rum so I thought I’d share mine here. I’ve just been making a new batch for Christmas prezzies. OMG did she mention the C word, oh yes she did! Come on ladies (and gentlemen too of course!) let’s get started making some gorgeous goodies for the festive season. After all some things take time to mature and get better with age (like us ladies for example) so now is the time to embrace the C word and get cracking for Christmas.

Spiced Rums are available in the shops and of course some are better than others. All are more expensive than ‘normal’ rum so making your own spiced rum saves money and means you are completely in charge of what goes in there so can make your own choices.

I use dark rum (the golden coloured stuff) not the white or Bacardi rum as the dark rum has a deeper richer flavour. A bit like the difference between white sugar and a rich brown sugar.

How To Make Your Own Spiced Rum

Ingredients;

• 1 bottle/750ml of dark/golden rum
• 2cm/1″ piece of fresh ginger
• 1 vanilla pod
• 2 cinnamon sticks
• 1 star anise
• 4 cardamom pods
• 2 cloves
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 2 all-spice berries
• Zest from half an orange (use an unwaxed orange but if you can’t get one then get a ‘normal’ orange and scrub with warm soapy water and nail brush and then rinse thoroughly and dry)
• 250g/1 cup of sugar

Here’s how to make your own spiced rum;

I use a large kilner jar for this, make sure jar is sterilised first.

• Put all your spices into the jar and add the rind of the orange, remember you only want the zesty outer peel not the bitter white pith.
• Bash the ginger to release juices and add to jar.
• Add the sugar and pour on that golden rum.
• Seal the jar and give it a good shake. Put in a cool dark cupboard and shake every day for the first few days to get the sugar to dissolve completely. After this leave it in there to mature and infuse and become all gorgeous and spicy, 2-3 weeks max.
• Pour the rum through cheesecloth or kitchen towels/coffee filter into a jug and decant into a pretty bottle and label.

This homemade spiced rum makes a great gift and so useful for adding to cocktails, puddings (wintry bread and butter pudding is oomphed up with a splash of this) and even in a desperately needed mug of coffee on a freezing cold day.

Cheers Dan, this one’s for you!

Karon x

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