Elder flower cordial recipe

jon r

Native
Apr 7, 2006
1,197
9
34
England, midlands
www.jonsbushcraft.com
elderflower.jpg


Heres the recipe i use for elderflower cordial. Its so simple to make and taists extreemly good. You must try it! The elderflowers are just comming out now so hurry!

Ingredients
20 elderflower heads
1 sliced lemon
1 sliced orange
2 tsp of citric acid (chemist should sell this)
1.5 kg (3.5 lbs) of sugar
1.2 ltr (2.5 pints) boiling water


ingredients.jpg


lemonchop.jpg


Method

1. Put all your ingredients in a bowl or bucket
2. Boil the kettle and measure out your boiling water. Then pour over the ingredients.
3.Stir until sugar is disolved
4.cover with cloth
5. Stir two times a day for five days.
6. Strain through muslin cloth or a sieve
7.Bottle and refrigerate

Dilute 5 parts water and one part cordial to serve. Although sometimes i like it neat!;) Enjoy!

mixedcordial.jpg
 

Rebel

Native
Jun 12, 2005
1,052
6
Hertfordshire (UK)
Thanks for that. My daughter picked some and wanted to make some of that but I couldn't remember any recipes.

That sure is a LOT of sugar though.
 

Barn Owl

Old Age Punk
Apr 10, 2007
8,246
7
58
Ayrshire
Never mind the cordial, i had some home made wine my mother won at a local fete (well it was a full bottle) ,lovely stuff , slipped down a treat ...when i went to get off my chair later it was like that Billy Connelly gag ...My legs were drunk but the top half sober!
Tom.
Or was that Elderbery?
 
Apr 14, 2006
630
1
Jurassic Coast
nice post Jon. Can I just add that it helps to pick the elderflowers when it has been dry for a few days because the rain tends to wash away a lot of the flavour.

Elderflower fritters are also very nice. dip them in tempura batter, deep fry and serve with sweet chilli dipping sauce ;)
 

Rebel

Native
Jun 12, 2005
1,052
6
Hertfordshire (UK)
This recipe uses a lot of sugar but remember that you will be diluting the final stuff down so it needs to be strong. The other ingredients dont overpower the elderflower at all.

I guess so, maybe I'll give it a go. I wonder if it would be good with brown sugar? (I've got this thing about never using white sugar :) )
 

dave k

Nomad
Jun 14, 2006
449
0
48
Blonay, Switzerland
I've made elderflower champagen and elderflower wine this year as well. the champage comes out really nice - it makes a very nice `drink it outdoors when it's too hot` kind of thing :)
 

PJMCBear

Settler
May 4, 2006
622
2
56
Hyde, Cheshire
You'll need a lot more of the flower heads, and you need to use only the flowers. I think the recipe I use for elderflower wine calls for 4 pints of the flowers.
 

Richie O

Full Member
Jan 10, 2007
173
0
52
Harold Wood, Essex
The elderflower wine i made smells like sherry, tastes like elderflowers and has a distinctive sherry aftertaste!

Too much sugar i think...
But it's still great to sip after dinner :D
 

leon-b

Bushcrafter (boy, I've got a lot to say!)
May 31, 2006
3,390
22
Who knows
ive just made it, in five days time i will be trieng it for the first time, cant wait :D
leon
 

Gwhtbushcraft

Settler
Nov 16, 2006
653
0
30
Warwickshire
Just finished now and can hardly wait the 5 days actually I tried some before leaving it and it already tastes just like the shop bought stuff in the fridge.
:)
 

Mikey P

Full Member
Nov 22, 2003
2,257
12
53
Glasgow, Scotland
OK, daft question but...will it work without the citric acid? If I add more lemon, would that work or is the citric acid an essential component?

If I do need it, does anyone know the German words for 'citric acid'???!!???:bluThinki
 

jon r

Native
Apr 7, 2006
1,197
9
34
England, midlands
www.jonsbushcraft.com
Im really pleased that a few of you are trying this out!

As for the Citric Acid... hmmm, im not sure. I havnt a clue what it does but i just put it in. I supose you could try without but i would follow the recipe for best results.

Citric acid in German is: Zitronensäure:)

Jon
 

Rebel

Native
Jun 12, 2005
1,052
6
Hertfordshire (UK)
OK, daft question but...will it work without the citric acid? If I add more lemon, would that work or is the citric acid an essential component?

If I do need it, does anyone know the German words for 'citric acid'???!!???:bluThinki

It should work with more lemon, or ascorbic acid (vitamin C), but you'd have to experiment to find the correct quantity. Citric acid is a cheap replacement for lemon in soft drinks, I don't think it has any qualities other than giving a citric flavour to beverages.

Apart from pharmacies a store that sells homebrew ingredients is a good place to find citric acid (health food shop, Wilkinsons, Internet, etc).
 

Mikey P

Full Member
Nov 22, 2003
2,257
12
53
Glasgow, Scotland
Im really pleased that a few of you are trying this out!

As for the Citric Acid... hmmm, im not sure. I havnt a clue what it does but i just put it in. I supose you could try without but i would follow the recipe for best results.

Citric acid in German is: Zitronensäure:)

Jon

Sehr gut, danke! Das muss ich mir merken.
 

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