Elderflower Cordial

I love the taste of Elderflower cordial and it's particularly rewarding to know you can make it so cheaply that you'll never have buy an expensive bottle of it ever again.

Elderflowers typically burst into flower at the end of May and you can spot them in many places and smell their beautiful summer scent.

The important thing about choosing and picking Elderflowers for consumption is to choose a good healthy bush or tree away from pollution so avoid the roadside sites. The best time to pick is after a spell of rain, followed by a warm dry day or two of sunshine. Choose the pure white large heads, without signs of dry, browning petals and don't pick from too low down, to avoid risk of picking contaminated blossoms!

Once you have a large carrier bag full, get home and start the recipe as follows:

Elderflower Cordial

20 large heads of elderflower
1.8kg granulated sugar
1 litre water
75g citric acid (from chemist)
2 lemons

Place the elderflowers in a large bowl.
In a pan, mix the sugar with the water and gently bring to the boil, stiring until the sugar has disolved.
Pour over the elderflowers and stir in the citric acid. Grate in the zest of two lemons and then slice the lemons and add the slices to the bowl too.
Cover and leave for 24 hours.
Strain through a jelly bag or a double layer of muslin, then decant into sterilised bottles and store in a cool, dark place.

It is vitally important that bottles are scrupulously clean and sterilised. This way the cordial will keep for several months. An alternative is to freeze the cordial in plastic bottles.

Try it served with fizzy water or gin, or even spooned over vanilla ice cream.