Probably made for centuries, this recipe became really popular during the Second World War, when fresh produce was scarce, as rose hips have a higher vitamin C count than most other fruits/vegetables, including citrus, and can be found in most hedgerows.
It is a simple recipe, the most time spent will be on collecting your hips.
Once home wash them, then place them in the freezer overnight (or until you’re ready to make your syrup), this simulates a frost and sweetens the hips.
Makes approximately 750 ml syrup
Ingredients
300 g/11 oz rosehips, defrosted
1 litre/2.2 pints water
300 g/11 oz sugar
Top and tail (cut off the ends) then mash the fruits, place your hips in a small to medium saucepan, pour in 500ml of water and bring to a boil, then turn down the heat and simmer for 20 minutes.
Strain both the rosehips and liquid into a muslin/dense cotton or jelly bag and allow the juice to drip through into a bowl. This removes the irritating hairs the hips contain (who else remembers these being used as itching powder at school?).
Using the same saucepan, bring the remaining 500ml of water to the boil, add the rosehip pulp, turn off the heat, cover and allow to infuse for a further 10 minutes. Strain through the jelly bag and allow all the liquid to drip through.
Wash out the saucepan and fill with the strained rosehip water. Bring to the boil and simmer for 20 minutes, or until the liquid has reduced by one third. Stir in the sugar, allow to dissolve, then simmer for 5 minutes before pouring into hot, sterilised bottles.
Use diluted as a hot or cold drink, dribble over porridge, pancakes, or ice-cream – a versatile gift from nature.
Magical properties – luck, love, health, self-love, beauty, peace, protection, money, prosperity, abundance, confidence, family, friendship, divination, truth, charms.
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Sources and further reading –
A Kitchen Witch’s World of Magical Plants & Herbs by Rachel Patterson