Ivy’s Homemade Lemon Squash and How to use it

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Homemade Lemon squash is made with only two ingredients. Lemon juice and sugar.

The lemon juice with sugar are boiled until the juice is reduced and becomes concentrated into a thick syrup. It can be stored for a long time and when diluted with water, we have lemonade.

Nothing like homemade lemon squash to be used as a nice quenching drink for the hot, summer days ahead of us.

I had lots of lemons at home left from last Tuesday when I visited the farmers’ market and I didn’t know what to do with them.

I had two alternatives about the lemon juice. I would either put it into ice cubes to freeze it, to be used whenever I needed some (but I usually have a lot of lemon ice cubes in the refrigerator) or I would make lemon squash, which my mother used to make in Cyprus and we loved it!

I really wanted to make the lemon squash for a long time now.

I wasn’t sure what to make with the peels, a fruit preserve, a marmalade, a liqueur or maybe all of them?

I love Limoncello but I also love the lemon fruit preserve.

Eventually I decided to prepare a lemon spoon sweet, which is made the same way as I did with the bergamot a few months ago and I started cutting the lemon peels the same way.  

However, I wasn’t lucky as the peels were very thin so they were not suitable to make the spoon sweet.  

I gave it a quick thought and decided to make some lemon marmalade.

The lemons I had were about 2 kilos and they made 600 ml of juice. I strained it and placed it into a pot with sugar.  It’s so simple that I can hardly call this a recipe by here it is:

Let’s make Lemon Squash

Ingredients:

• 600 grams lemon juice
• 600 grams sugar

How to make Lemon Squash

1. Put both ingredients in a pot and mix it with a wooden spoon for the sugar to dissolve.
2. When it comes to a boil, lower heat and simmer for 6 – 7  minutes.  
3. Remove any froth forming on top with a slotted spoon.
4. Remove from the heat and allow to cool.  
5. Store in glass bottles in the refrigerator, up to 1 year.

What can I make with Lemon Squash?

To make Lemonade:

75 ml (2 – 3 cm) concentrated lemon juice (or more/less on how sweet you like it)
1 cup cold water
Ice cubes
Slice of lemon

Directions:

Add cold water or carbonated water or soda to concentrated lemon squash, ice cubes and stir.

Decorate with a slice of  lemon and enjoy!

To make Brandy Sour

Brandy Sour is a Cypriot cocktail made with Cypriot brandy, homemade lemon squash, carbonated water and angostura.

It was first developed at the Forest Park Hotel, in the hill-resort of Platres, for the young King Farouk of Egypt, who often stayed at the hotel during his frequent visits to the island. 

The Brandy Sour was introduced as an alcoholic substitute for iced tea, as a way of disguising the Muslim monarch’s preference for Western-style cocktails.

Depending on the age of the brandy they are labeled accordingly.   V.S.O.P. means “Very Superior Old Pale” or 5-Star, aged at least five years in wood.

Although Branndy is typically taken as an after-dinner drink, in Cyprus the lighter brandy can accompany food, just like any other wine.

Brandy Sour recipe

Makes: 1

Ingredients:

2 oz of  KEO V.S.O.P. brandy
3 oz of lemon squash
Ice cubes (plus carbonated water or soda to fill the glass)
A slice of lemon
2-4 drops of bitters (Angostura or Cypriot Cock Drops brands)
Sugar for the top of the glass

Directions:

Wet the glass with the slice of lemon and dip into some sugar.

Add brandy, lemon squash, angostura and mix.

Add ice cubes, water and decorate with the lemon slice and serve.

Note:  (1 oz = 28 ml)

Kopiaste and Kali Orexi,

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