The Rumtopf: Preserving Summer Sweets For Winter Treats

The Christmas season has always been a time for tradition, brim with anticipation and many hours of thoughtful preparations. Embodying both of these, from its first spring harvest to its final winter dishing, is the German tradition of a rumtopf: a dessert made of rum, sugar and berries aged to perfection in a clay pot.


Gather the Goods

a german clay pot
a cool place for storage
white sugar
dark rum
fruit in season


Patience is Potent

Start your pot with strawberries. They are usually the first to come into season, followed by cherries, raspberries, red currents, apricots and peaches, plums and pears. Try to avoid fruits that are sour, high in acidity or water content or which may turn mushy like bananas. Once the berries are washed and dried place them in a bowl and coat in sugar. The ratio is 2 to 1, fruit to sugar( for example 2 cups of fruit and 1 cup of sugar). Let it marinate for about an hour then add it to your topf with enough rum to cover the fruit. Cover the topf with plastic wrap and an elastic band, then replace the lid. Store it in a cool dark place until the next fruit is in season. Repeat the process until your pot is either full or fruit seasons are over. It is important to check on your pot to make sure the fruit is always submerged and fermenting nicely as opposed to drying up or spoiling. As the Christmas festivities begin you can serve your rumtopf over ice cream, waffles, French toast or pound cake. Make it potable by straining the fruit from the liquor, warming it up and serving it in a snifter with a cinnamon stick.