apples & thyme: simple syrup

I love savory sweet things.

I know, weird, right? One of my all time most memorable
eating experiences of my life is a scoop of tarragon gelato.

Sweet, without being cloying and just enough herbal to be complex. Perfection.
That excited me, really excited me. Shivered me to the nether regions of gustatory delights. Tarragon & Gelato. Shut up. Not possible…..oh yes. That is sort of how I feel about this here simple syrup.

You see, it all started like this:

N: Do you think thyme would be good in a mixed drink?
R: Totally! Have you ever heard of Farigoule? It’s a thyme liqueur. It’s kind of awesome
N: What do you think it would be good with?
R: Hmm….I dunno, let’s think what thyme is good with…

Apples.
Thyme is super good with apples. Thyme & Apples together in a sparkling drink are apparently the most dreamy thing for Autumn & Winter entertaining.

I have had many a roast stuffed with thyme & apples. A pork loin all rubbed with spices and tied up with a belly full of sautéed onions, apples & thyme. It’s porcine divine, a favorite fall dish. But sweet thyme. Um, why haven’t I done this before?

And can we talk about apple soda? Have you had this stuff? I freaking love it. I discovered as much one fortuitous picnic in Chicago. We picked up our drinks at a local bodega & with a basket full of roast pork sandwiches out in the car, Manzanita sol sodas seemed the best option. And, it was. The Best.

So here we have it, an apple thyme simple syrup. We made a cocktail with a dry Spanish Cava & a mocktail with sparkling cider & a splash of sparkling water. I have been making sodas out of it all week with just a shot of syrup & topped with soda water. It is also good as an addition to a vodka soda.

The flavor extraction works best if its allowed to steep for a few hours up to overnight, so make a batch in advance & pull it out for holiday entertaining. It’s delicious. After a couple of experiments we came to the conclusion that dried apples gave better apple face than fresh. The dried apples make the syrup considerably sweeter, so less is more, for sure. Thyme takes time to infuse, so allowing this to sit over night is the best way to go.

Apple Thyme Simple Syrup

ingredients:
1 cup raw sugar
1 cup filtered cold water
1 bunch of thyme or 20-25 stems
5 dried apple rings

how to make it:
-place all in a small heavy bottomed sauce pan & dissolve sugar over a medium heat
-swirl pan occasionally while sugar dissolves
-once dissolved, bring to a simmer for 5-7 minutes
-turn off heat, stir & steep for 15 minutes up to 45 minutes
-remove apples & most of thyme sprigs, place in a well sealed container & refrigerate
-this keeps indefinitely in the refrigerator

Apple Thyme Spritz

makes about 6 cocktails (depending on the size of your glasses)

what you need:
cocktail: champagne flutes
mocktail: pilsner glasses or tom collins glasses

ingredients:

cocktail:
apple thyme syrup
sparkling wine, I like to use a dry Spanish Cava
apple rings
sprigs of thyme for garnish

mocktail:
apple thyme syrup
sparkling apple cider
plain sparking mineral water
apple rings
sprigs of thyme for garnish

how to make it:
-make sure your ingredients are well chilled
-add 1 tbsp of syrup to each glass
-for cocktail: fill glass with cava up to three quarters full
-for mocktail: fill glass 2/3 full with apple cider & top with sparkling water
-garnish each drink with a sprig of thyme & an apple ring (they are delicious as an after cocktail treat!)