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Epicurious

Saba

Recipe information

  • Yield

    makes about 1/2 cup

Ingredients

2 pounds wine grapes, such as concord or champagne
1 fresh rosemary sprig

Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Place the grapes in a large pot and crush with a potato masher so that they release their juices. Add the rosemary and bring to a boil over medium heat (leave the seeds and stems in the pot). Cook the mixture, stirring and crushing frequently, until the grapes have completely broken down and lost their juices, about 15 minutes. Strain the contents through a fine-mesh sieve into a small pot. Make sure to squeeze all of the juice from the grapes (pressing with the back of a wooden spoon works well). Discard the seeds, stems, and rosemary.

    Step 2

    Bring the juices back to a boil over medium heat and slowly reduce until a syrupy consistency is reached (the liquid will coat the back of a metal spoon lightly), about 40 minutes. It is very easy to scorch the syrup, so test it frequently by drizzling it on a plate. If it has reduced too much, add a little water to reconstitute. The syrup will thicken significantly when it is cool.

Reprinted with permission from The Meatball Shop Cookbook by Daniel Holzman and Michael Chernow with Lauren Deen. Copyright © 2011 by Daniel Holzman and Michael Chernow; photographs copyright © 2011 by John Kernick. Published by Ballantine Books, an imprint of The Random House Publishing Group. All Rights Reserved. Daniel Holzman is executive chef at The Meatball Shop. He is an alum of Le Bernadin, San Francisco's Fifth Floor, and Aqua, among other highly acclaimed restaurants. He attended the Culinary Institute of America, where he received a full scholarship from the James Beard Foundation. Michael Chernow runs the front-of-house operations and the beverage program at The Meatball Shop. He has worked extensively in restaurants in New York and Los Angeles. He is a graduate of the French Culinary Institute, where he earned degrees in culinary arts and restaurant management. He and Holzman met as teenagers when they worked together as delivery boys at the New York vegan restaurant Candle Café. Needless to say, the vegan thing didn't really stick. Lauren Deen is the author of the New York Times bestselling Cook Yourself Thin series and Kitchen Playdates. She is an Emmy award—and James Beard award— winning television producer and director. She is currently executive producer of food(ography) on the Cooking Channel.
TagsCondimentGrapeFruitGluten FreeDairy FreeNut FreeVegetarianVeganSimmerCookbooks
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