Homemade Elderflower Cordial
The sweet natural floral flavour of Homemade Elderflower Cordial is far superior and cheaper than store bought. As well as being refreshing with ice-cold water, you can add a botanical splash to Prosecco or Gin and even make elderflower curd for cakes and scones.
Contents
May in summary
Where did May go?!? The month passed in a blur and I didn’t even get time to post, I will make up for my absence in June.
Breakfast Club
The month started as it usually does, with Breakfast Club. This time we took it on tour as Jo (my cousin) is currently in the process of moving and it was her turn. After reading reviews and talking to people who had been we decided to treat ourselves to The Alchemist in Nottingham. The building and decor were equally impressive as the food, drinks and service. It felt very indulgent enjoying cocktails at the time we are usually doing the dishes!
Poorly
I’ve had tonsillitis which then triggers my Idiopathic Angioedema, which is a posh word for deep tissue swelling and is similar to a severe allergic reaction. Not one part of my body escapes the itchy hives, angry rashes and extreme swelling when it takes full control. I had a quick trip to A&E for steroids to be administered intravenously one morning when my bottom lip started to swell and it all became too unbearable. I have to say that my A&E experience was amazing! The staff were wonderful, within an hour I had been assessed and received treatment. I’m fit and well again now.
GDPR
I know everyone is probably sick of this topic and the thousands of emails that came with it. This was a particular headache for me even as a little blogger! I nearly decided to end The Delectable Garden when I couldn’t get my head around the policy and what it meant for me. Luckily I found some helpful posts online and with the support of a good friend I managed to become compliant before the deadline. As my blog is for information purposes only I have decided to turn off all features that capture personal data (comments and sign up), enable anonymise IP function for Google Analytics and allow you to set your own cookie options. You can find more details in my updated Cookie and Privacy Policies.
Sourdough
I started a passionate love affair with making sourdough bread. For weeks my kitchen came with a ‘strong language’ warning to all who entered. Numerous epic fails nearly broke me. However when I finally cracked it, thanks to a demonstration at the fabulous School of Artisan Food, I had never been so proud of myself in my entire baking history! I will do a full post on making sourdough bread for beginners because it is wonderful bread.
Bert
I’m sad to say that following his chemotherapy treatment Bert has relapsed. The specialist were thrilled with his recovery so the cluster seizures he experienced over the May bank holiday weekend were a complete shock. Increased medication has him back under control for now but we know our limited time is precious. Our friends and family have been a huge support so I’d like to say thank you.
Elderflower
Strangely enough it’s a year ago since my last tonsillitis/swelling episode. During recovery time off work I realised we had elderflower growing in the garden so I decided to make homemade elderflower cordial. I was amazed by the flavours you can create from homegrown products and that is how The Delectable Garden was born. A year on the delicate cream elderflowers are bursting open in The Delectable Garden so I thought I would share the recipe that started my blogging adventure.
Homemade Elderflower you Cordial
Makes: 1.5 litres (approximately)
Preparation: 20 minutes
Cooking: 10 minutes
Infusing: 24 hours
Difficulty: Easy
Ingredients
15-20 Elderflower heads, woody stalks removed
Zest and juice from one unwaxed lemon
1.1 kg Granulated sugar
150 ml Runny honey
750 ml Water
Method
- Gently rinse the elderflower heads under cold water and give a little shake to remove any excess water and dirt.
- Cut the flowers from the main woody stalks into a large bowl. Stir the zest and lemon juice into the flowers and set aside.
- Pour the water, sugar and honey into a large pan. Stir frequently over a medium heat until all the sugar has dissolved. Do not allow the syrup to boil at this point.
- When the sugar has dissolved bring the pan of syrup to the boil, then turn of the heat. Stir in the flower mixture, cover the pan and leave to infuse for 24hrs.
- Strain the cordial through a fine sieve. Allow the mixture to drain through, do not be tempted to squeeze the cordial out of the flowers. Discard the flowers and funnel the cordial into steriliised bottles. Keep in the fridge for up to a month.
Tips
Use flowers that have just opened and aren’t going over for a better flavour.
Make sure you know it’s definitely elderflower that you’re picking!
Gain permission if you are picking flowers that aren’t on your property.
Avoid picking flowers from the roadside as they may be contaminated with pollution and dirt.
You can usually find elderflower in hedgerows, parks and forests.
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