How to make Elderflower cordial | Cooking Your Garden Produce | Gardening Australia

There’s nothing more refreshing than sitting down after a long day to a delicious cool drink made from your own flowers and produce. Sophie shows us how easy it is to make an Elderflower cordial. Subscribe 🔔 http://ab.co/GA-subscribe
The elderflower is a vigorous, soft-leaved deciduous shrub that can grow to 3-4meters high. In some parts of Australia, elderflower can have a weedy tendency. To make sure it doesn’t overrun your garden, check its suitability to your area, choose your position carefully or grow it in a pot. A great way to stop berries growing and spreading their seed is to prune their flowers for a delicious drink. Prune flowers on a dry sunny day for the best flavour.

Ingredients:
25 Heads of elderflower blossoms
2 Litres Sugar
3 Litres boiling water
2 Oranges
4 Lemons
1 tsp Citric acid
Kitchen scissors
Muslin cloth
Glass bottles

Method:
– Dissolve the sugar thoroughly in boiling water
– Cut flowers from stalks, you can do this directly over the pot with kitchen scissors
– Zest the peels of all the citruses and add to the pot, keeping the flesh for juicing later
– Stir, cover and leave to steep overnight
– Mix in the juice from lemons and oranges
– Add citric acid and stir thoroughly
– Strain the mixture through muslin cloth
– Decant liquid into clean glass bottles and store in the fridge

This cordial mixture will keep for 3 months in the fridge, or if not using citric acid, 3 weeks. It also freezes well. Sophie dilutes this cordial by 1 part cordial to 3-4 parts water, subject to taste.
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