Brewing up a taste of summer

Lucky me! I found some unadulterated elderflowers flourishing in the wild. No pesticides. No traffic pollution. Just a plentiful supply of bushes in full flower. How heady the scent, even the the wide open space!

Faced with such a gift, the only sensible thing to do is make cordial!

My little recipe is as follows –

15 heads of elderflowers (as fresh as possible, keep them upright while you harvest to keep as much of the pollen for flavour)

500g caster sugar

1l of water

2 unwaxed lemons

4 tbs runny honey (local if you can get it)

1. Add the sugar and honey to the water in a large cauldron/pan
2. Slowly bring the sweet mixture to the boil until the sugars have dissolved
3. Remove from the heat and add the zest and juice of one lemon and slice the other lemon and add to the pan.
4. After carefully debugging the flowers, add them to the mixture, heads down and make sure they are submerged.

The next step is when the magic happens.

5. Cover the cauldron/pan and leave the mixture to come to its senses for the next 24 hours

The next day you will need some sterilised bottles or jars and a sterile jam bag and stand. A muslin cloth and colander would do the job if you don’t have jam making kit to hand.

Tip the contents of the cauldron/pan into the sieving apparatus and leave to drip through to a clean pan.

Decant into your chosen vessels, label and get ready for some lovely summer-flavoured drinks.

You can dilute the cordial with still or sparkling water. My favourite is to add a little cordial to a champagne flute and dilute with chilled prosecco.

Cheers!