Making elderflower cordial

Easy, delicious and practically free

Take 20-30 dry, freshly picked elderflower florets and shake off the insects. Place in a large bowl with the zest of 2 lemons and cover them with boiling water (approx 1.5 litres). Cover and leave for 5+ hours or overnight, until cold. Strain the liquid through muslin or a clean cotton cloth, and put into a saucepan. For each 500ml of liquid add 350g of sugar, 50ml of lemon juice and 1 heaped tsp of tartaric acid (optional), heat gently, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Bring to a gentle simmer, then strain again.

Pour the cordial through a funnel into sterilised bottles and seal. Or you could pour it into small containers to put into the freezer. With the tartaric acid, the cordial should last in bottles for about a year. Without it, store the cordial in the fridge where it should keep for several weeks.

Serve the cordial as a drink diluted to taste with water. It can also be used with ice cream.

Thanks to Hugh Fearnly-Wittingstall for this recipe, and to Carol Edwards for reminding me to get on with making it this year.