Nearly elderflower time!

[hedgewizard]

This year I'll be making five gallons of champagne, five gallons of wine, one gallon of cordial and a shedload of sorbet. All I need now is one rainy day to persuade the trees to get on with it!

[Silver Ether]

I shall be doing cordial and jelly ... never made jelly before ... I mean elderflower jelly

[red]

champagne and cordial here.. still drinking last years but nearly out.

and elderflower fritters of course.. om nom!

[MKG]

As usual, I shall be trying to convince people that elderflowers are toxic. Well - it might work

Long live the elderberry!!!!!!!!!

Mike

[Silver Ether]

oh I am selective on how many love ... as I need the berries too ....

[JulieSherris]

Right, this might be a stupid question.... can you use the flowers from ground elder as well as the tree elder flowers??

I have both in my garden - but I have considerably more ground elder!

[MKG]

Nice try, Julie

I think the answer is no (though I'm not entirely sure). The leaves can be eaten as a salad, but apparently only BEFORE the plant flowers, after which point the effect is of a laxative. If flowering is the "loosening" point, I'd hold the flowers themselves under suspicion.

Mike

[JulieSherris]

Haha, Thanks Mike!

I guess the answer to that reply is 'oh bum'!!

I know about using the elder leaves in salads - to be honest, there's only so many salads you can eat & I have enough ground elder here to supply the whole of today's wedding party

[hedgewizard]

Yes, you can use it - I'll look out the recipe tomorrow.

[JulieSherris]

Woohoo! Thanks HW, whatever the recipe is for, I'll try it this year - it will justify me walking around the place studiously ignoring the 1001 weeds that grow in the bank borders

[hedgewizard]

This has been sitting in my slush pile waiting to go on my website, but it'll have to wait a while longer!

500ml (one pint) of ground elderflower florets
350g (12oz) honey
juice of two lemons
120ml (4 fluid oz) cold strong black tea
half a teaspoonful of yeast nutrient
wine yeast

Remove the ground elder flowers from the stems and measure them in a jug before washing them, and place them in a fermentation bucket. Mix the honey into 450ml of hot water in a saucepan and heat gently, with stirring, until it dissolves. Leave it to cool, and then pour it onto the flowers along with the cold tea, lemon juice, yeast nutrient and a further 4 litres (7 pints) of water. Start the yeast and stir into the bucket (some modern yeast brands can be added directly - read the label).

Leave the bucket in a warm place for ten days, stirring twice a day, and then strain it into the fermentation jar. If needed, add enough water to bring the level to an inch from the neck of the jar: seal with an airlock, and leave it to work as normal. Once off the lees it takes about six months to mature, but to be worthwhile wait until January.

[JulieSherris]

Thanks HW!!

I promise I will try it this year then - I have the equipment, I have the time, I certainly have the ground elder, so roll on January! x

[Millymollymandy]

Eeeks must go and check my flowers - had my first strawberry today - everything is so early.

[hedgewizard]

jealous! Didn't grow any in the tunnel this year so still a week or two to go under cloches!

[chickenchargrill]

Oh, nom nom nom, haven't have elderflower fritters in years! My other half is just about coming round to the thought of eating foraged foods, not sure if I'll be able to get him to try fritters. Mind you, if he doesn't then all the more for me :D

To be fair, 4 years ago his diet solely consisted of beans, cheese, bread and pizza.