Candy Infused Vodka
A colorful and alcoholic treat that's perfect for Purim (or any) revelry.
Lots of people are infusing vodka with candy–especially Skittles– these days, and the results look colorful and fun. But Skittles aren’t kosher. Still, I wanted to infuse my own vodka, and came up with this fun variation on the trend using kosher candy in a variety of flavors and colors. Perfect for giving as gifts on Purim and for making mixed drinks. Here’s how it works:
First, gather the ingredients and tools you’ll need.
Ingredients
A total of 1 lb of kosher hard candies:
Lemonheads, Red Hots, Starlight mints, or jelly beans.
1 large empty plastic water bottle for each flavor or color
1.75 liter bottle vodka
Directions
Separate your candy by color and kind. This is only necessary if you’re using a candy that comes in one package with many colors (like jelly beans). If you’re using Lemonheads and Red Hots, for instance, you can skip this step.
Pour one flavor of candy into each infusion bottle. Then, pour vodka into each water bottle. If you’re making three or four flavors, try to divide the vodka into three or four bottles leaving approximately even amounts of vodka in each bottle. If you’re making four flavors, this will be about 15 ounces of vodka in each bottle.
Put the caps back on the bottles, and shake vigorously. The more you shake, the more quickly the candy will dissolve. Set the bottles aside for a few hours, and then come back and shake them again. Ideally, leave them overnight, and shake in the morning. After 24 hours, most of the candy will have dissolved, and you should be left with brightly colored vodka with some little bits of candy floating in it. The candies will dissolve at different rates, so don’t be surprised if there’s nothing left of your Lemonheads, but the jelly beans are mostly intact. If the candy hasn’t dissolved significantly, shake it again, and leave it for another day.
At this point you can put the bottles in the freezer, to chill. The bits of candy will add a little crunch to your drinks. But, if you want to strain out whatever’s left, you’ll be left with a smoother and slightly fancier looking drink.
To strain the vodka, start by putting a funnel inside a large measuring cup. Put a coffee filter in the funnel. Pour one of the infusions into the strainer setup. Pour slowly, and allow the liquid time to soak through. In the end, you should have about 13 ounces of candy infused vodka. Toss out the filter and whatever was caught in it. Pour the vodka into clean empty glass bottles, easy to find at dollar and houseware stores.
Repeat this process for each flavor. Stick the bottles in the freezer overnight and voila! Candy flavored vodka, ready for your Purim celebrations.
MyJewishLearning.com reminds you to enjoy your candy flavored vodka responsibly.
kosher
Pronounced: KOH-sher, Origin: Hebrew, adhering to kashrut, the traditional Jewish dietary laws.
Purim
Pronounced: PUR-im, the Feast of Lots, Origin: Hebrew, a joyous holiday that recounts the saving of the Jews from a threatened massacre during the Persian period.
