Elderflower Cordial
A simple elderflower cordial is a lovely way to bottle up the taste of summer. Note: I’ve listed the recipe by both quantities that I used, but also ratios in case you want to scale up or down.
Ingredients
By Measurements:
- About 4 cups loosely packed elderflowers from about 10 clusters the size of an open-hand
- 4 cups sugar
- 8 cups water
- ½ c lemon juice
- 4 T lemon zest
By ratio:
- 1 part elderflower
- 1 part sugar
- 2 parts water
- 1 lemon per 1 part flower ex: 2 cups of flowers would use 2 lemons. And FYI: 1 lemon has about about 2 T juice, and 1 T of zest
Instructions
- Combine the water and the sugar in a pot over medium heat and stirring until the sugar has dissolved. Let cool to room temperature.
- While waiting, work on processing your elderflowers. Remove as many of the stems as possible, along with any bugs, and place in a bowl or a large jar with the lemon juice and the zest.
- Pour the sugar water over the flowers. Tightly cover the container with a tea towel or cheesecloth, and set aside to steep.
- Let the elderflower mixture infuse on the counter for 1-4 days. Mine took about 30 hours in my 75-80 degree house. It will depend on how warm your house is. I tasted mine after 1 days, and it just tasted like simple syrup. On the second day, I could SMELL the fragrance of the blooms and sugar, which is how I knew it was ready.
- Strain your cordial, then transfer to clean bottles or jars. I re-use washed and sterilized champagne bottles that had the wire swing top enclosure)
- Enjoy your new cordial by adding 1 to 3 tablespoons of the syrup to water or seltzer, to a glass of sparkling wine, to a couple shots of vodka or gin, or a splash into anything that could use a bit of sunshine and sweetness!
Notes
To make an alcoholic elderflower cordial, simply add vodka into the elderflower syrup infusion after the simple syrup has cooled completely. I'd suggest adding at least 1 part alcohol to 1 part simple syrup, but the ratio is up to you, and 1 part syrup to 8 parts alcohol creates a much less sweet drink that's still wonderfully flavorful.