Elderflower Cordial Mary Berry Food

PRELUDE TO SUMMER - OLD FASHIONED ENGLISH ELDERFLOWER CORDIAL

Steps:

• Place the freshly picked elderflowers in a large heatproof bowl or pan (that can be covered or has a lid). Add the sliced lemons. Then add the sugar.
• Pour the boiling water over and add the citric acid - stir all the ingredients together until the sugar has dissolved.
• Make sure the lemon slices and most of the elderflower heads are under the sugar water. Cover and leave in a cool place for 4 days.
• Every day, remove the lid and stir the mixture - pressing the lemon slices gently to extract the juice.
• You should be able to smell the beautiful floral fragrance of the elderflowers after only one day -- if after 4 days you feel there is not enough "floral" flavour to the cordial, leave for a further day.Remember, that this will be diluted to drink or added to other ingredients, so it should be as strong as possible in smell and flavour!
• When you are ready to bottle the cordial, strain through a non-metallic FINE sieve (lined with muslin if necessary - if the sieve is not fine enough) into a large pouring jug or bowl.
• Then pour the cordial into clean and sterile bottles. Seal the bottles and store the cordial in a cool, dark, dry place. This cordial is ready to use/drink now, and it will keep for a very long time if stored in the right conditions. (I have some from 4 years ago and it is still as fragrant and floral as the day I made it!).
• NB: Citric acid can be found in chemists or pharmacists, or in special brewing and wine-making shops/departments. If you cannot source citric acid, use an extra lemon instead.

HOMEMADE ELDERFLOWER CORDIAL

Steps:

• Put the sugar and 1.5 litres/2¾ pints water into the largest saucepan you have. Gently heat, without boiling, until the sugar has dissolved. Give it a stir every now and again. Pare the zest from the lemons using a potato peeler, then slice the lemons into rounds.
• Once the sugar has dissolved, bring the pan of syrup to the boil, then turn off the heat. Fill a washing up bowl with cold water. Give the flowers a gentle swish around to loosen any dirt or bugs. Lift flowers out, gently shake and transfer to the syrup along with the lemons, zest and citric acid, then stir well. Cover the pan and leave to infuse for 24 hrs.
• Line a colander with a clean tea towel, then sit it over a large bowl or pan. Ladle in the syrup - let it drip slowly through. Discard the bits left in the towel. Use a funnel and a ladle to fill sterilised bottles (run glass bottles through the dishwasher, or wash well with soapy water. Rinse, then leave to dry in a low oven). The cordial is ready to drink straight away and will keep in the fridge for up to 6 weeks. Or freeze it in plastic containers or ice cube trays and defrost as needed.

GOOSEBERRY & ELDERFLOWER FOOL

Steps:

• Wash the gooseberries thoroughly, top and tail them, then place in a wide heavy-bottomed pan with the sugar, cordial and lemon juice. Simmer over a gentle heat until all the gooseberries have burst.
• Lightly crush with a fork, tip into a bowl to cool and chill for at least 2 hrs. This can be done up to 2 days ahead.
• Lightly whip the cream to a soft dropping consistency, then swirl in the cooked gooseberries to give a rippled effect. Spoon the fool into glasses and chill until you are ready to serve.

ELDERFLOWER & RASPBERRY JELLY

Steps:

• Arrange half of the raspberries (choose similar-sized ones) in 2 x 150ml darioles or moulds.
• Cut the remaining raspberries into halves and place in a mixing bowl. Squeeze over the lemon juice and sprinkle with caster sugar, then toss. Cover and chill in the fridge.
• Put the gelatine leaves in a bowl of cold water to soften. Pour the cordial and 50ml of the Prosecco into a saucepan. Heat until just simmering, then take off the heat.
• Take the softened gelatine leaves out of the bowl and squeeze out the excess water. Put them in the saucepan and whisk together to combine. Reduce the temperature until it's cool enough to touch (try placing the pan in a shallow sink of cold water). Once the liquid is cool, gently add the remaining Prosecco and stir. The more gently you stir, the more fizz you will have in your jelly. Carefully pour into the jelly moulds. Put the moulds onto a metal tray and place in the fridge. They will take 3-4 hrs to set.
• To serve, turn out the jelly onto a plate and spoon over the macerated raspberries. Decorate the plate with a few elderflowers or try sprinkling a little cracked black pepper over the top, if you like.