Recipe: Pomegranate molasses a versatile way to preserve flavor
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In Northern California, this is pomegranate season and, judging by my tree, this could be a bountiful year.
I have a single Wonderful pomegranate tree, a variety that repeatedly lives up to its name. And this year, it yielded dozens of softball-size fruit. The birds and squirrels took a large share, but I still managed to harvest about 30 pounds.
At home in our Mediterranean climate, pomegranates are a popular late fall-winter addition to local menus, brightening meals with bursts of flavor.
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Fresh arils – the juice-packed seed sacs – get sprinkled in salads and over entrees. Like little rubies, they decorate desserts.
But how do you enjoy that pomegranate flavor long after the season has gone?
Pomegranate molasses preserves that intense flavor and makes it easy to augment all sorts of dishes. Use it as a glaze on pork or chicken. Add a tablespoon to vinaigrette or other dressings. It’s a must for Mediterranean cooking.
The molasses is basically concentrated pomegranate juice. It will keep refrigerated for months.
On average, a pomegranate yields about 1/2 cup juice. This recipe used 6 pomegranates to make 1 cup molasses.
To produce juice, removed arils and then put them through a food mill. (While deseeding the fruit, wear old clothing that you won’t mind getting stained.)
Or simply cut the pomegranate in half, and juice with a citrus juice reamer. (It’s messy but fast.)
This molasses recipe can be scaled down as needed; it will reduce faster but watch closely.
Pomegranate molasses
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Makes 1 cup to 1-1/2 cups
Ingredients:
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Garden Checklist for week of April 14
It's still not warm enough to transplant tomatoes directly in the ground, but we’re getting there.
* April is the last chance to plant citrus trees such as dwarf orange, lemon and kumquat. These trees also look good in landscaping and provide fresh fruit in winter.
* Smell orange blossoms? Feed citrus trees with a low dose of balanced fertilizer (such as 10-10-10) during bloom to help set fruit. Keep an eye out for ants.
* Apply slow-release fertilizer to the lawn.
* Thoroughly clean debris from the bottom of outdoor ponds or fountains.
* Spring brings a flush of rapid growth, and that means your garden needs nutrients. Fertilize shrubs and trees with a slow-release fertilizer. Or mulch with a 1-inch layer of compost.
* Azaleas and camellias looking a little yellow? If leaves are turning yellow between the veins, give them a boost with chelated iron.
* Trim dead flowers but not leaves from spring-flowering bulbs such as daffodils and tulips. Those leaves gather energy to create next year's flowers. Also, give the bulbs a fertilizer boost after bloom.
* Pinch chrysanthemums back to 12 inches for fall flowers. Cut old stems to the ground.
* Mulch around plants to conserve moisture and control weeds.
* From seed, plant beans, beets, cantaloupes, carrots, corn, cucumbers, melons, radishes and squash.
* Plant onion sets.
* In the flower garden, plant seeds for asters, cosmos, celosia, marigolds, salvia, sunflowers and zinnias.
* Transplant petunias, zinnias, geraniums and other summer bloomers.
* Plant perennials and dahlia tubers for summer bloom.
* Mid to late April is about the last chance to plant summer bulbs, such as gladiolus and tuberous begonias.
* Transplant lettuce seedlings. Choose varieties that mature quickly such as loose leaf.
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