Recipe of the Week - Elderflower Cordial

 Recipe of the Week – Elderflower Cordial

Elderflowers are definitely at their best right now although this depends on which part of the country you live.

My daughter went out during the week and picked a bagful of them but, do leave some for the elderberry berries.

In some parts of the country, it is believed that the gypsies always said it was unlucky to pick any part of the elder tree !

Approx 20 good sized elderflower heads – [try to find flower heads which have not started to drop or are still in bloom, if the flower heads are small count 2 as 1 but don’t use too many over the amount as the flavour is quite strong.]

3 pints [1½ litres] water

3 lbs [1½ kg] sugar

2 oz [50g] citric acid – you can buy this from a pharmacy

2 – 3 lemons – cut up [use juice and zest]

Method

1.     *   Cut off the main stems from the flowers, remove any brown bits or debris and wash the flowers well.

2.     *   Rinse off well – best in a strainer to avoid losing too many of the flowers.

3.     *   Put the water into a large pan or preserving pan, add the sugar and stir over a low heat until the sugar has dissolved.

4.    *    Bring the water to the boil.

5.     *   Add the citric acid, the flowers and lemons. Stir round quickly then turn off the heat.

6.      *  Leave the flowers and other ingredients soaking for 24 hours.

7.      *  Strain the liquid through a fine sieve [discard the flower mixture] and bottle up in sterile, sealable bottles.

8.    *    Dilute to taste with water.

9.       * This cordial will keep for a week in the fridge or can be frozen – why not freeze in ice cube trays for individual portions.