This syrup is highly versatile; simply substitute the fruit used depending upon the season, and keep the rest of the ingredients the same, to obtain thick, flavourful syrups all year round!

ingredients

• 1 lb fresh strawberries

• 1 stick of rhubarb

• 1 red Gala apple

• 1/2 cup demerara sugar

• 1/2 cup bourbon or rye whiskey of choice

METHOD

• Wash, dry, and de-stem the strawberries. Cut them in half and set aside.

• Wipe the rhubarb with a damp paper towel, and then wipe again with a dry one, to clean it. Chop off the scraggly ends and cut the stick into 1” pieces.

• Clean the apple the same way as the rhubarb, then core and cut it into thick slices.

• Heat up a grill pan (a regular cast-iron pan will also do the trick) on medium heat. Ensure that the pan is thoroughly cleaned and dried prior to grilling the fruit - you do not want any other residue to seep into the fruit’s flavour. Do not grease the pan at all. Once heated, transfer the fruit pieces on it, one by one using tongs. Let the fruit grill on medium-low for 3 - 4 minutes, till well-defined grill marks appear on the surface. Keep poking at the fruit pieces, or they will stick to the pan and make it difficult to scrape off later. Flip the pieces, and repeat the process on the other side.

• Transfer the grilled fruit to a small cookpot or saucepan, add the sugar and whiskey, and mix well. Cook the mixture on medium-low heat, stirring continuously. Cook till all the fruit is mushy and has formed a slurry, for about 5 - 6 minutes.

• Turn off the heat, transfer the mixture to a large bowl, and strain using a mesh sieve. Press down hard on the fruit mulch to extract every bit of syrup possible. Let the syrup cool down completely at room temperature before transferring to a storage container. Refrigerate for long-term use.