(Marillenglasur)

　　Editor's note: The recipe and introductory text below are excerpted from Rick Rodgers's book Kaffeehaus: The Best Desserts from the Classic Cafés of Vienna, Budapest, and Prague. To read more about Austrian cooking, click here.

　　This recipe originally accompanied Sachertorte.

　　Fruit glazes — easily prepared from preserves — add flavor, protect crisp crusts from getting soft in contact with moist fillings, and provide a slick undercoat that adds extra sheen when another glaze is poured over the dessert. Apricot and red currant are the most versatile, as their acidity balances the sweetness of the dessert, but you can use another favorite flavor, if you wish. Just be sure to use preserves, and not jam or jelly, which have different fruit-sugar ratios. The preserves must be simmered for a few minutes to evaporate excess liquid and give a firm, slick finish to the glazed dessserts. It's best to turn an entire 12-ounce jar of preserves into glaze, storing the glaze in the empty preserves jar, so you have small amounts ready when needed.

　　

Ingredients

Makes about 1 cup

　　1 1/4 cups apricot preserves

　　2 tablespoons golden rum or water

　　

Step 1

Bring the preserves and rum to a boil in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring often. Cook, stirring often, until the last drops that cling to the spoon are very sticky and reluctant to leave the spoon, 2 to 3 minutes. Strain through a wire sieve into a small bowl, pressing hard on the solids. Use warm.

　　

RED CURRANT GLAZE

Step 2

Substitute red currant preserves for the apricot preserves.

　　From Kaffeehaus: The Best Desserts from the Classic Cafés of Vienna, Budapest, and Prague by Rick Rodgers ©2002, 2014 by Clarkson Potter/Publishers, a member of the Crown Publishing Group, a division of Random House, Inc. Buy the full book from Amazon or Bookshop.