Liquore di Fichi d'India - Cactus Pear Liqueur

Southern Italians use the fruit of the prickly pear cactus in sweets and desserts where they are called fichi d'india - literally, India figs. They also make (typically at home) a liqueur with them by infusing the fruit in alcohol, similar to how limoncello is made. In Calabria it is called liquore di fichi d'india. The original home of the prickly pear cactus, by the way, is the desert states of the United States and Mexico! They were brought to Italy by the Spanish explorers in the New World and found a perfect new home in southern Italy which, at the time, was ruled by Spain. The explorers also brought tomatoes and peppers and potatoes. 
Mille grazie, Cristoforo Colombo!!!

Liquore di fichi d'india recipe

15 ripe cactus pears
4 cups 151 proof grain alcohol 
2 cups sugar syrup

Use the amounts above as a base. They can be adjusted for different quantities of cactus pears.

Procedure -  

Peel cactus pears and cut in half. I wear rubber gloves when doing this because sometimes there are hair-like almost invisible thorns left on the surface of the pear that can get into the skin on your fingers and drive you crazy with itching. 

Let the cut fruit steep in the grain alcohol in a large sealable glass container for 10 days. The solution will turn a dark orange to red color. 

After 10 days, remove fruit and add sugar syrup. Age for 20 days.

For the sugar syrup

2 cups water
2 cups sugar

Bring the water to a boil in a pot and add the sugar. Stir to dissolve the sugar and take off the heat to let cool. Pour into the glass container with the liqueur and reseal.

After 20 days, pour the liqueur into sanitized bottles through a fine mesh sieve and funnel to remove any remaining bits of fruit. Seal or cork. Keep in the freezer or in the refrigerator. Enjoy!

My family's ancestral home, the town of  Vazzano, in Calabria, Italy, holds an annual Fichi D'India Festival. Here are some videos of the event.