Creme de Violettes Liqueur (with Creme Yvette variation)
To make Creme de Violettes, use just violets, alcohol, and simple syrup. This would traditionally be made with sweet violets, which have a much more perfumed aroma than wild American violets, so if that's all you have access to, you can make the Creme Yvette variation and add some citrus and vanilla to the infusion to give it a more pronounced but still delicate flavor. Traditionally, this would be made with an unaged brandy (like grappa, pisco, applejack, or kirsch) but you can use vodka. Don't use brandy aged in oak (what most people think of when they think of brandy or cognac) or you will overpower the delicate floral character.
Ingredients
- 1 cup sweet violets (NOT African violets, but any of the native or European sweet violets will do)
- 1 pint vodka or brandy (good quality, neutral spirit) brandy is traditional but if you don't have good quality, neutral spirit you can make a clean tasting infusion with vodka
- 1 inch square mandarin or sweet orange peel optional, boosts flavor if using American violets
- 1 inch piece vanilla bean, split optional, boosts flavor if using American violets
- 2-6 oz simple syrup (equal parts sugar and water, heated to dissolve and cooled) to taste (sweeter is more traditional and will help preserve the color and flavor, but you can reduce sugar if you like)
- 1 drop blue and red liquid food coloring, each (optional) gives a more vibrant color, feel free to omit
Instructions
- Pick at least a heaping cup of violet flowers. Make sure you pick somewhere that has not been sprayed with herbicides or pesticides. It's best to gather edible flowers early in the day.
- As soon as you return home with the flowers, separate the purple or white petals from the calyx, or green part, at the base of the flower.
- Put the flower petals in an infusion jar (any jar with a regular or wide mouth and a tightly sealing lid will do) and cover with the vodka. If you are making the Creme Yvette variation, add the vanilla bean and citrus peel.
- Let the petals macerate for at least a week, inverting the jar daily for the first few days, or often enough to make sure all petals are submerged. Do not shake, just gently mix it.
- Strain out the petals. Some recipes have you combine them with dry sugar to infuse into the simple syrup, but they will have already given most of their color and essence into the infusion and you have to be careful not to burn them when making the simple syrup. Use the finest mesh strainer you have, or strain first through a colander and again through a coffee filter and funnel to get a sparkling product. This will take time, so make sure you set up the funnel where it won't be disturbed. You will lose some color but gain clarity.
- Make a simple syrup (add the strained petals if you like, and strain them out again before combining with the liqueur, making sure to heat the syrup very gently but enough to fully dissolve the sugar). Heat equal parts white sugar and water in a small saucepan and heat gently until the sugar dissolves completely.
- Cool and add simple syrup to strained violet infusion to taste. This is a delicate and somewhat perishable liqueur, and more simple syrup will help preserve the flavor and color. Since this is often used as a flavor and color accent in cocktails, it can be quite sweet without being cloying.
- If desired, adjust the color with a drop of blue and red food coloring. The natural color, especially from American violets, will be subtle and is sensitive to light, so store this in a cool, dark place.
- Enjoy in your favorite classic cocktails, like an Aviation, Blue Moon, or spike a spritzer of sparkling wine for a bubbly springtime sipper.
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