Pine Needle Syrup

It’s really a Scandinavian thing! You can see people in Sweden, Denmark but also in Finland, during pine needle picking season pulled off to the side of the road foraging pine needles… It’s really as common as picking juniper berries or rosemary.

Any branches or tree sap will affect the flavour, making it a bit "woody" or "sauna"-ish to the taste. You may use a small fork to strip the branches for needles.
You can do the syrup all year long using the needles. However, you get the richest and fullest flavour by picking the bright green pine buds during spring and use those.

Ingredients

• 5 dl pine needles
• 7½ dl water
• 5 dl sugar
• 1 tbsp ginger, grated

Method

1. Rinse the pine needles well and remove any pieces of wood or bark.
2. Bring water to a boil and add the pine needles and grated ginger.
3. Let it simmer gently for 30–40 minutes.
4. Strain out the needles and return the liquid to the pot.
5. Add sugar and simmer for another 15–20 minutes until it thickens slightly.
6. Pour into sterilized bottles while hot and seal.