Homemade Elderflower Cordial Recipe

And finally here is our Homemade Elderflower Cordial Recipe.

Since January this year I was planning making elderflower cordial with my 3 sons. So I wanted to give them the experience of picking up elderflower and spending some quality time  together. The unforgettable elderflower fragrance is simply a part of my childhood. We always knew the summer is very close and we loved our little chore of picking up the flowers. The cordial was made by my mum and it did not matter how much of it was made – it never lasted till winter.

Elderflower cordial has fantastic health benefits, rich in antioxidants and its healing properties have been used as a remedy for coughs, colds, hay fever and even rheumatism for centuries. Elderflower is in season during May and the best time for picking is the end of May – beginning June.

One sunny Sunday we packed our picnic bags and went to look for the elderflower. First my boys were asking what it is , how does it look like and what it is for. They absolutely loved the idea. I showed them the pictures of elderflower in a book and told them to remember it. On our way to the park we did find some alongside busy road. They recognised it and wanted to pick it up. Their faces were a little bit disappointed when I was trying to explain them these ones were not good for harvesting. But at the end we did find it. The elderflower trees were covered with the white flower heads which are best collected fresh and new when the tiny buds have just opened and come to bloom before the fragrance is tainted with bitterness. You always should harvest the flowers in dry and sunny weather. We cut the cluster of flowers and put in a canvas bag without pressing. They had fantastic time and were looking forward to taste the cordial.

At home we carefully took out our flowers, checked them if they are clean – you should use clean flowers. You really should not washed them to prevent to lose the aroma. In our tiny flat we do not have plenty of space to store jugs, so we put our flowers with sliced lemons and citric acid which is fantastic for preservative purposes in my slow cooker. It really served the purpose. Then we poured the boiling water over the sugar in a very large saucepans stirring till the sugar dissolved and left to cool. When the syrup cooled down we poured over the elderflower heads  cooled sugar syrup,  Covered  and left it up to a couple of days.

After  2 days I sieved and strained through muslin into prepared and sterilised bottles. Store the cordial in the fridge. To serve the cordial dilute it to taste with still or sparkling water.

My boys could not wait to try it. They love it and want to drink it all the time. Even my oldest little fussy eater. Hope you will like this cordial based on our homemade elderflower cordial recipe!

1.5kg/3lb 5oz  sugar

2 lemons

about 25 – 30 heads elderflowers

40g/1¾oz citric acid

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