Sapa di Fico d’India

Prickly Pear Syrup

2 ingredients•Prep: 30 mins•Cook: 3 hrs 20 mins

Prickly pear syrup is sold commercially, but it’s super easy to make. If you live in parts of California or the American Southwest, in particular, you may have a free and practically unlimited supply of prickly pears. This recipe makes enough for one batch of punch, but if you’re going to the trouble of foraging and cleaning the prickly pears anyway, I would scale it up so you have leftovers for pouring over ice cream, or even for replacing the honey for Seadas.

Ingredients (2)

Prickly pears(5 lb, peeled)
If you are foraging for your own prickly pears, take care not to get your fingers full of their tiny, nearly invisible spines. I learned this the hard way when I first encountered them. Use tongs, gloves, or a mechanic alarm to harvest them, and once you’ve gotten them home, run them under cold water in a colander until the spines have been washed away.
Sugar(¼ cup)

Instructions

Pass the prickly pears (5 lb) through a food mill or sieve to eliminate the seeds and transfer the juice to a medium pot.
Bring to a simmer over medium heat, then cook until the juice has reduced to a thick syrup, about 3 hours.
Stir in the sugar (¼ cup) and cook until it has dissolved, 3 to 5 minutes.
Set aside to cool before using, about 30 minutes.

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Food of the Italian Islands

Food of the Italian Islands

Sapa di Fico d’India

Sapa di Fico d’India

Ingredients (2)

Ingredients (2)

Instructions

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