Rhubarb and Strawberry Cordial

Deep jewel-toned Rhubarb and Strawberry Cordial is a wonderfully refreshing summertime drink when mixed with clear soda.

Course Drinks

Cuisine Canadian

Keyword cordial, rhubarb, strawberry, summertime drink

My Island Bistro Kitchen Barbara99

Ingredients

2¼ lbs red rhubarb stalks, cut into 1/2″ pieces (weighed after leaves and root ends removed)
1¼ lbs strawberries, hulled and coarsely chopped
2 cups water
(This should yield apx. 5 cups of strained rhubarb/strawberry juice)
1 cup granulated sugar
1 – 295ml can frozen pink lemonade concentrate, thawed
juice of 1 small pink grapefruit
juice of 1/2 lemon
juice of 1 orange
juice of 1 small lime
(These four citrus juices, together, should yield apx. 1 cup strained liquid)
Lemon-lime soda (or 7-Up or Sprite)

Instructions

Thaw frozen pink lemonade concentrate.
Squeeze the grapefruit, lemon, orange, and lime to extract their juices. Strain through a fine wire mesh sieve. Discard fruit pulp and seeds.
Combine rhubarb, strawberries, and water into a stockpot. Cover and bring mixture to the boiling point over medium-high heat then reduce to a simmer. Cook for approximately 15 minutes, or until rhubarb and strawberries are soft and mushy. Using a potato masher, mash the mixture to further break down the fruit.
Strain rhubarb/strawberry mixture through a fine wire mesh sieve into a large pot, heatproof bowl, or large measuring cup to extract the juice. Discard the rhubarb/strawberry pulp. This process should yield approximately 5 cups of rhubarb/strawberry juice. Straining the juice a second time through a clean fine wire mesh sieve to refine it further and remove any traces of the fruit pulp impurities is recommended.
Combine the strained citrus juices with the rhubarb/strawberry juice in a large, clean stockpot.
Stir sugar into rhubarb/strawberry and citrus juice mixture. Heat over medium-low heat to dissolve the sugar. Do not boil. Remove from heat. Using a fine wire mesh sieve, strain the lemonade concentrate into the juice mixture. Cool to room temperature then chill in refrigerator.
Pour cordial into large pitcher if serving immediately or pour into bottles, seal, and freeze for later use. Mason jars make good containers in which to freeze the Rhubarb and Strawberry Cordial. Whatever glass bottles are used, be sure to leave ample room in the bottles for expansion during freezing.

Recipe Notes

Yield: Apx. 7 –8 cups (depending on the water content of the rhubarb and strawberries used as well as how much juice is extracted from the citrus fruits)

To serve:

For individual servings, fill glass 1/3 full of chilled Rhubarb and Strawberry Cordial. Fill remaining 2/3 glass with chilled Lemon-Lime, 7-Up, or Sprite soda. Stir. Add ice cubes and a sprig of mint. Decorate glass with a strawberry or a lemon wheel, if desired.

To make multiple servings, such as in a punch bowl, follow the 1 part Rhubarb and Strawberry Cordial concentrate to 2 parts soda ratio.