MocktailsScandinavianEasy

Spiced Pear Cardamom Fizz

Name: Spiced Pear Cardamom Fizz
Prep time: 17 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 32 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: Scandinavian
Ingredients: 2 cups (480 ml) pear juice, unsweetened, cloudy if possible, at room temperature; 12 pods (3 g) green cardamom pods, lightly crushed with the flat side of a knife so each pod splits open; 1 stick (3-inch) (5 g) cinnamon stick, whole; 3 slices (15 g) fresh ginger, unpeeled, sliced about ⅛ inch (3 mm) thick; 2 strips (6 g) lemon peel, removed with a vegetable peeler in wide strips, white pith avoided; 3 tablespoons (63 g) honey, mild liquid honey; 3 tablespoons (45 ml) fresh lemon juice, freshly squeezed from about 1½ lemons and strained of seeds; 2 cups (480 ml) soda water, very cold, from a freshly opened bottle; 3 cups (420 g) ice cubes, fresh, about 12 cubes; 1 small (150 g) small ripe pear, cored and cut into 12 thin slices (optional)

From the MyKitchenBank Kitchen

Pear juice is gently simmered with green cardamom, cinnamon, ginger and lemon peel, sweetened with honey, then chilled and topped with soda water. The result is a fragrant, lightly sparkling Scandinavian-style mocktail that tastes like a cozy fika in a glass.

Prep: 17 min
Cook: 15 min
Wait: 1 hr 30 min
Total: 2 hr 2 min
Makes: 4 drinks (about 8 oz / 240 ml each, before ice)

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Ingredients

4 servings

For the spiced pear syrup
2 cups (480 ml) pear juice, unsweetened, cloudy if possible, at room temperature
12 pods (3 g) green cardamom pods, lightly crushed with the flat side of a knife so each pod splits open
1 stick (3-inch) (5 g) cinnamon stick, whole
3 slices (15 g) fresh ginger, unpeeled, sliced about ⅛ inch (3 mm) thick
2 strips (6 g) lemon peel, removed with a vegetable peeler in wide strips, white pith avoided
3 tablespoons (63 g) honey, mild liquid honey
To finish
3 tablespoons (45 ml) fresh lemon juice, freshly squeezed from about 1½ lemons and strained of seeds
2 cups (480 ml) soda water, very cold, from a freshly opened bottle
3 cups (420 g) ice cubes, fresh, about 12 cubes
1 small (150 g) small ripe pear, cored and cut into 12 thin slices (optional)

Equipment (8)

Medium saucepan (2-quart / 2-liter)
Fine-mesh strainer
Heatproof jar or pitcher with lid (at least 1 pint / 500 ml)
Vegetable peeler
Small sharp knife and cutting board
4 tall glasses (12-oz / 350 ml)
Measuring cups and spoons
Long spoon for stirring

Steps

Before you start

Plan on about 2 hours from start to glass: the spiced pear syrup needs 30 minutes to steep and cool, then at least 60 minutes in the fridge so the drink is properly cold.
Chill the soda water in the fridge ahead of time. Warm soda goes flat fast and melts the ice.
Use cloudy or not-from-concentrate pear juice with no added sugar if you can; very sweet juice will make the drink cloying.
Honey should not be given to children under 1 year old.

1
Crush the spices
- Place the cardamom pods on a cutting board and press down on each with the flat side of a knife until the pod splits open and you can smell it.
- Use a vegetable peeler to remove 2 wide strips of peel from a lemon, avoiding the bitter white pith.
- Slice the ginger into 3 rounds about ⅛ inch (3 mm) thick.
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Ready when: Pods are cracked open and fragrant.
Tip: Keep the seeds and the husks. Both add flavor to the syrup.
2
Combine in saucepan
- Pour the 2 cups (480 ml) pear juice into a 2-quart (2-liter) saucepan.
- Add the crushed cardamom with its husks, the cinnamon stick, ginger slices and lemon peel strips.
- Do not add the honey yet.
3
Simmer gently
- Set the pan over medium heat and bring to a bare simmer, about 3 minutes, with small bubbles just breaking at the edges.
- Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 12 minutes, stirring once or twice, until the juice smells strongly of cardamom and has reduced slightly to roughly 1¾ cups (about 400 ml).
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Ready when: Juice looks slightly thicker, has reduced by about one-sixth, and smells strongly of cardamom and ginger.
Tip: Keep it at a gentle simmer. A hard boil makes pear juice taste cooked and jammy and turns the spices bitter.
4
Stir in honey
- Remove the pan from the heat.
- Add the 3 tablespoons (63 g) honey and stir for about 30 seconds until completely dissolved with no streaks at the bottom of the pan.
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Ready when: Honey is fully dissolved and the syrup looks uniform.
Tip: Adding honey off the heat keeps its delicate floral flavor.
5
Steep and cool
- Leave the spices in the pan, cover, and let the syrup steep at room temperature for 30 minutes.
- It will cool to about room temperature and the flavor will deepen.
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Ready when: The pan is no longer hot to the touch.
Tip: Do not pour hot syrup into a glass jar. It can crack.
6
Strain and chill
- Pour the syrup through a fine-mesh strainer into a heatproof jar or pitcher, pressing lightly on the spices to extract the liquid.
- Discard the solids.
- Cover and refrigerate for at least 60 minutes, until fully cold.
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Ready when: Syrup is cold throughout and slightly thick, with no floating bits of spice.
Tip: A little cloudiness is normal with cloudy pear juice.
7
Prepare glasses and garnish
- Core the small pear and cut it into 12 thin slices, about ⅛ inch (3 mm) thick.
- Fill four 12-oz (350 ml) glasses with about ¾ cup (105 g) of ice each, and tuck 3 pear slices against the inside of each glass.
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Ready when: Glasses are filled with ice and garnished.
Tip: Toss the slices with a few drops of lemon juice if you are prepping them more than 10 minutes ahead, to stop browning.
8
Mix and top with soda
- Stir the 3 tablespoons (45 ml) lemon juice into the chilled syrup.
- Pour about ⅓ cup (90 ml) of the lemony syrup into each glass over the ice.
- Top each with ½ cup (120 ml) cold soda water, pouring slowly down the side of the glass.
- Give one gentle stir and serve right away.
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Ready when: The drink is fizzy and pale golden, with a lively foam on top.
Tip: Stir only once and gently. Vigorous stirring knocks out the bubbles. Taste and add a squeeze more lemon if your pear juice was very sweet.

Good to know

Tips

Crush the cardamom pods just before simmering. Pre-crushed pods lose their aroma quickly.
Never boil the juice hard. A gentle simmer extracts spice flavor without making the pear taste cooked.
Always chill the syrup fully before adding soda water so the ice does not melt and water down the drink.
For a party, set out a jug of the lemony syrup and a bucket of soda water so guests can top their own glasses.

Make ahead

"The strained spiced pear syrup can be made up to 4 days ahead and kept covered in the fridge. Add the lemon juice and soda water only when serving."

Storage & reheating

"Unmixed syrup: keep covered in the fridge for up to 4 days, or freeze in an airtight container for up to 2 months (thaw overnight in the fridge). Do not leave at room temperature for more than 2 hours. Once soda water has been added, drink immediately because the bubbles fade within minutes. Leftover mixed drink without ice can be refrigerated in a sealed jar for 1 day but will be flat. Serve cold; no reheating is needed. For a warm winter version, gently heat the syrup and top with hot water instead of soda."

Substitutions

honey → maple syrup or agave nectar. Use the same amount. Makes the drink vegan, with a slightly deeper maple flavor if using maple.
soda water → sparkling mineral water or dry ginger beer. Mineral water works 1:1. Ginger beer makes a sweeter, spicier drink, so reduce the honey to 2 tablespoons (42 g).
green cardamom pods → ½ teaspoon ground cardamom. The syrup will be slightly cloudy and may need a second strain through a coffee filter.
pear juice → apple juice (unsweetened, cloudy). Gives a similar result with a slightly tarter taste. Keep the honey as written and taste before adding all the lemon juice.