This fruity strawberry liqueur aka Strawberry Limes tastes like a smoothie with a naughty secret. As we are approaching strawberry season this is a recipe that you need to try to find out why this little drink is so popular in Germany.
Most people who have tasted this homemade strawberry liqueur, called Erdbeer Limes in Germany, absolutely love it. No wonder, as it is probably one of the fruitiest, tastiest alcoholic drinks you can imagine. It looks magnificent deep red and is the highlight at German summer parties.
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Free Gift Tags For Your Homemade Liqueur
Homemade liqueur is way easier and faster to make than you might imagine. You can jump right to the recipe, read the step-by-step instructions or watch the video tutorial, if you like to see how I make my homemade Strawberry Limes.
This homemade liqueur makes also the perfect hostess gift, Mother`s or Father`s Day present. I am including some gift tags for you in this post, that are free to download. Just click on the download button to print gift tags for your homemade Strawberry Limes.
The German word for strawberry is Erdbeere.
Ingredients
It only takes 5 ingredients to make this delicious summer drink.
- strawberries
- water
- lemon juice
- vodka
- sugar
See recipe card for quantities.
Step by Step Instructions
Step 1 - To make about 3.5 quarts of strawberry liqueur you need 4-pounds of strawberries. If strawberries are not in season, you can easily make this drink with frozen strawberries.
If you use fresh strawberries make sure that they are ripe and sweet. Clean them, remove the stem and then cut them roughly.
In case you are using frozen strawberries thaw them for at least 2 hours. It is no problem, if they are still a bit frozen, as the warm syrup will thaw them later fully.
Step 2 - Add water and sugar to a small saucepan. Heat over medium heat and stir until the sugar is completely dissolved.
Step 3 - Pour the water-sugar mixture over the strawberries and allow to sit for about 30 minutes.
Step 4 - Then add the mixture to a blender and puree finely.
Step 5 - Strain the strawberry puree through a fine sieve to remove the seeds. This step is optional but I highly recommend it as the little seeds will take away from the full pleasure when drinking the liqueur.
Step 6 - Then add the lemon juice. I usually add first only about ¾ of the lemon juice and then make a taste test to adjust the lemon juice to my liking.
Step 7 - Pour in the vodka and mix well. I usually then make another taste test. If you like it sweeter, this is the perfect time to add some powdered sugar if necessary. But keep in mind that the taste will intensify during the next 24 hours.
Step 8 - Fill the Strawberry Limes into sterilized bottles and store them in the fridge.
Variations
Try these variations you might like them!
- Creamy - add heavy cream to the liqueur. This makes the perfect creamy strawberry liqueur.
- Tropical - add coconut milk or coconut cream. This will create an amazing tropical drink that makes you feel like you are on a vacation.
- Vanilla - Add a tablespoon of vanilla extract to the mixture, it will add a delicious twist to the drink. The combination of strawberry and vanilla is a match made in heaven.
- Non-Alcoholic - Scroll down to my top tip to see how you can make a non-alcoholic version of this drink.
- Other Fruit - Try other berries, cherries, pineapple or mango versions with this recipe.
- Rum - In case you don´t like vodka you can make this drink with rum or Doppelkorn.
Equipment
You will need some empty bottles to fill up the Strawberry Limes. You can find the cute little bottles that I used in my video online, or bigger ones at Ikea, the Dollar store and your local supermarkets. But you also can use cleaned bottles that you already have at home.
Storage
Store the bottles in the fridge and enjoy the perfect summer drink in all it´s amazing variations. The non-creamy version will stay for at least 4-6 weeks fresh in the fridge. The creamy version should be good for about 1 week.
You can fill the mixture also into ice cubes or plastic bottles and freeze them. This way you will have all year round delicious liqueur on hand.
Top Tip
Fill up a bottle with the strawberry base before you add the vodka for a non-alcoholic version. This way you have the perfect alternative that your kids and people who don´t drink alcohol can enjoy.
How to Serve
You can either drink Strawberry Limes on the rocks or mix it with water, Sprite, ginger ale, tonic water or your favorite soft drink.
It is also delicious with sparkling wine or champagne. You can use the liqueur for Margaritas and all kinds of long drinks.
My personal favorite is to pour it over ice cream or other desserts. So good!
Video Tutorial
Recipe
German Strawberry Liqueur - Erdbeer Limes
Ingredients
- 4- pounds frozen strawberries or 5-pounds fresh strawberries
- 3 cups sugar
- 1 ¾ cups water
- 2 ½ cups lemon juice or lime juice
- 3 cups vodka about 700 ml. or 24 fl.oz.
Instructions
- Thaw frozen strawberries or clean and chop fresh strawberries roughly.
- Add water and sugar to a small saucepan, heat over medium heat until sugar is completely dissolved.
- Pour water sugar mixture over strawberries and allow to sit for about 30 minutes.
- Add mixture to a blender and puree finely.
- Strain through a fine sieve to a large bowl to remove seeds if necessary.
- Add lemon juice and vodka and mix well.
- Fill into sterilized bottles and store in the fridge.
Notes
- The ingredients make about 3.5 quarts of Strawberry Limes.
- We calculated each shot with 20 ml which is 2 cl.
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