Brandy infuses German cheer into fruit

This year, I have made a conscious effort to revisit the memories of holidays past, and those memories have been kind to me. They have allowed me to recall my family’s traditions, and to feel connected to loved ones in a challenging time.

My parents met as graduate students in 1970s Berlin, and their years abroad had a powerful impact on the culinary influences they would bring back home to Lagos. A host of German holiday traditions took hold in our family, among them making Christmas stollen, a fruit bread filled with marzipan and topped with powdered sugar that my mom perfected in my godmother’s kitchen.

I can still see my mother grinding spices and peeling citrus rinds for a key component of the stollen: a homemade mix of brandied fruit. She’d blend the different dried fruits — cherries, cranberries and currants — and add the splashes of brandy that would allow all of the flavors to intermingle.

The taste of this steeped fruit is reminiscent of the kinds of spiced wines found in many parts of the world during the holidays. For me, it is evocative, deeply personal and infinitely versatile at once.

I left Berlin as a toddler, too young to know the difference between kinderpunsch and glühwein, but I’ve carried those German traditions with me wherever I go. I always keep a batch of that spiced fruit concoction stashed in a Mason jar at the back of my refrigerator. When I’ve moved apartments in Brooklyn, the batch moved with me, finding its old spot in a new fridge.

“How long is this supposed to last?” my husband will ask, hopeful he can reclaim the corner where the jar humbly resides. How long indeed.

I incorporate this brandied fruit mix into an array of dishes and drinks. It’s perfectly suited for mixing into a scone recipe before baking, for finishing braised lamb shanks, and for enlivening a cocktail with a lovely spiced citrus bouquet.

But that’s only the beginning. You can also stir the drained fruit into muffin or cake batter, mix it into a rich bread dough, toss it with bulkier fruit like apples or pears as a filling for hand pies, or serve it as an accompaniment to roasts right out of the oven. Whatever it touches, it imparts powerful flavors that are, for me, inseparable from the holidays themselves.

Because the components require a two-week steeping, you’ll need to plan ahead. Finding the ingredients is fairly simple — you just need a liquor store and a purveyor of dry goods and spices.

And preparing the mixture is simple, too. Once it’s in a jar, it can be left on the counter or placed in the fridge. It is ready to use after a few days, but after 14 days, it becomes deeply complex, almost intoxicating ( and not from the alcohol itself). If you divide the batch into smaller jars, they can be wonderful gifts for those who could use a reminder of the holiday season’s sweet rewards.

Brandied Dried Fruit

8 ounces currants or raisins

8 ounces dried cranberries

4 ounces dried cherries

2 ounces dried pears, finely chopped

2 ounces dried apricots, thinly sliced

1 orange

1 lemon, sliced thin and seeds removed, chopped 2 tablespoons fresh grated ginger (from about a 2-inch piece)

1 teaspoon anise seeds 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

½ teaspoon grated nutmeg ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

¼ teaspoon ground cardamom

1 cup brandy

In a large bowl, combine the currants, cranberries, cherries, pears and apricots. Zest the orange and add the zest to the bowl. Add the lemon, ginger, anise seeds, black pepper, nutmeg, cinnamon and cardamom.

Juice the orange and add the liquid to the bowl. Add the brandy and stir to combine.

Transfer the mixture to a jar, cover and refrigerate. (If you don’t have a jar that’s large enough, keep the mixture in the bowl and cover with plastic wrap.) Allow the fruit to sit in the liquid for 2 to 14 days before using. The flavor of the fruit, spices and brandy will improve with time. At least once a day, turn the jar upside-down (or thoroughly stir the mixture if it’s in a bowl) to make sure all the dried fruit gets coated in the brandied liquid. The mixture keeps in the refrigerator for months, stored in an airtight container.

Makes about 5 cups.

Brandied Fruit Scones

3 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for rolling the dough

¼ cup sugar, plus more for sprinkling (which is optional, but encouraged)

1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt

1 ½ teaspoons baking powder

¼ teaspoon baking soda

¾ cup cold unsalted butter, cut into 1-inch cubes

1 cup drained Brandied Dried Fruit

1 ¼ cups cold heavy cream, plus more for brushing

Heat oven to 400 degrees. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper.

In a medium mixing bowl, combine the flour, ¼ cup sugar, salt, baking powder and baking soda, and whisk to incorporate. Working quickly, rub the cold butter into the dry mixture using your fingers or a pastry cutter. Cut the butter into the flour until the pieces are the size of small pebbles. (Alternatively, use a food processor to pulse the dry ingredients with the butter, to cut the butter.)

Add the drained brandied fruit and toss to combine. Make a well in the center and pour in the heavy cream. Use a wooden spoon to combine until a shaggy dough forms. Transfer the dough to a work surface and press the clumps together enough to form a slightly uniform piece.

Lift the dough and flour your work surface. Pat or roll the dough out into an 8-inch square. Use a sharp knife or a bench scraper to divide the dough into 16 square pieces. (At this point, the dough can be wrapped and frozen up to a week ahead. To bake frozen scones, heat oven to 375 degrees. Pop the frozen scones on a lined baking sheet, leaving some space between the pieces. Brush the tops with heavy cream, sprinkle with sugar and bake for 25 minutes.) Transfer the scones to the prepared baking sheet. Brush the tops with heavy cream, and sprinkle with sugar if you like.

Bake until cooked through and the tops are golden brown, 20 to 22 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Makes 16 scones.

Brandied Dried Fruit (The New York Times/Christopher Testani)