Vinegars

Last fall I decided to make some more flavored vinegars.  I had made a number of different flavors through out the spring and summer. Clive blossom, nasturtium, black pepper and hot pepper.  This fall I went with cranberry and leeks and carrot, leek and hot pepper. Making infused vinegars is one of the simplest projects you can do.  It also has the added benefit of being very tasty and versatile. I use vinegar in almost every dish that I make.  After adding the initial salt I will add some vinegar to crisp up the flavor.  Most of the time I can get away with less than half of the salt called for in recipes and still have all of the flavor.

Cranberry Leek Vinegar

4 cups white vinegar

1 cup cranberries, washed and picked over

1/2 cup leeks, white part only, sliced

Place cranberries and leeks in a glass container. Cover with vinegar.  Allow to soak for at least 1 month.

  You can use stoppered bottles as shown above or glass jars.   Both have benefits.  You can use the glass jars and then decant into bottles.  This way you can have many different vinegars steeping and only a few bottles are needed. 

Spicy Carrot Leek Vinegar

4 cups white vinegar

1 carrot, minced

1/2 cup leeks, white part only, sliced

 1-2 chiles

Place carrot, leeks and chiles in glass jar and steep for 1 month.