There are two elderflower bushes next to my flat. They are covered with flowers right now. Has anyone ever tried making their own elderflower lemonade or jelly or cordial or...
...I don't know what else you can do with them.
Any tips?
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Elderflowers - recipe tips
Yes, we always did it with my grandmother in summer!
Look here, this is for the syrup:
You take around 25-30 elder cluster-heads when the flowers are smelling nicely, but not throwing the yellow pollen all around yet.
You take a big bottle, preferably that type they use for putting away cucumbers... it should be around 5 litres. Okay, it can be a pot, too. It is better if it is a transparent bottle cause you can actually leave it in the window, on the sun - it tastes better!
Fill it up with pre-boiled lukewarm water, put the flowers into it.
Add lemon salt - 25 dkgs (quarter of a kilo)!
Leave it stay, preferably in a warm place for 24 hours.
When done, take the flowers out, filter and add about 4 kgs of sugar - (taste it and decide if you want more or less than that).
Pour into smaller bottles and... there you have it!
There are hundreds of recipee versions by the way. According to some, you can even leave it for 5 days. Just take care to filter it before it gets rotten or decomposed. Lemon does not conserve elder till the end of time... you need the sugar, too!
Enjoy.
Look here, this is for the syrup:
You take around 25-30 elder cluster-heads when the flowers are smelling nicely, but not throwing the yellow pollen all around yet.
You take a big bottle, preferably that type they use for putting away cucumbers... it should be around 5 litres. Okay, it can be a pot, too. It is better if it is a transparent bottle cause you can actually leave it in the window, on the sun - it tastes better!
Fill it up with pre-boiled lukewarm water, put the flowers into it.
Add lemon salt - 25 dkgs (quarter of a kilo)!
Leave it stay, preferably in a warm place for 24 hours.
When done, take the flowers out, filter and add about 4 kgs of sugar - (taste it and decide if you want more or less than that).
Pour into smaller bottles and... there you have it!
There are hundreds of recipee versions by the way. According to some, you can even leave it for 5 days. Just take care to filter it before it gets rotten or decomposed. Lemon does not conserve elder till the end of time... you need the sugar, too!
Enjoy.
Great - thanks very much - I'll try this out. The only thing I've got that could hold 5 litres at the moment is a bucket but I'll check out the baumarkt on monday. Is lemon salt citric acid?
yes, citric acid.
and you can also do it in a smaller quantity... just divide everything by 2 or 2.5
and you can also do it in a smaller quantity... just divide everything by 2 or 2.5
I don´t have a recipe, but elderflower wine is very tasty (maybe you could look it up on the internet).
I make elderflower cordial; it's wonderfully refreshing in the summer.
As Julia says, there are lots of variations on the recipe. I boil the water with the sugar, then add the flower heads to the water once it's cooled down. I also add a load of slices of orange and lemon. I let that soak for 48 hours, stirring occasionally. To preserve, I pour white wine vinegar in; you can't taste it.
You could not preserve it at all and it will keep in the fridge for a week or so.
Incidentally, I wouldn't use any flowers that are by a road - they absorb fumes. I get mine from along the Isar.
Edit: Oh yeah, I'd forgotten that the Germans like to deep fry them. It ain't so healthy but tastes delicious.
As Julia says, there are lots of variations on the recipe. I boil the water with the sugar, then add the flower heads to the water once it's cooled down. I also add a load of slices of orange and lemon. I let that soak for 48 hours, stirring occasionally. To preserve, I pour white wine vinegar in; you can't taste it.
You could not preserve it at all and it will keep in the fridge for a week or so.
Incidentally, I wouldn't use any flowers that are by a road - they absorb fumes. I get mine from along the Isar.
Edit: Oh yeah, I'd forgotten that the Germans like to deep fry them. It ain't so healthy but tastes delicious.
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