Whether for lemonade or a refreshing Hugo: With elderflower syrup you can bring the taste of summer into your glass. You can make the sweet aroma dispenser yourself very easily and with little effort.
Lemons give the elderflower syrup a tangy aftertaste
Collect elderflowers
Depending on the region, the elder blossoms between the beginning of June and the end of July. If you want to harvest the umbels, this should be done on a dry day. Pick only pure white flowers and strip off all leaves as these can cause gastrointestinal distress.
Always collect in the garden or in the forest, away from busy roads.
Recipe for elderflower syrup
Ingredients:
- 1 liter tap water
- 750 grams of sugar
- 30 grams of citric acid
- 1 organic lemon or lime
- 20 elderflower spikes
preparation
Do not clean the elderflowers with water, as this will affect the taste. Simply read off insects and carefully shake out the umbels.
- Bring the sugar and tap water to a boil in a saucepan.
- Add citric acid, let cool. This is important as the boiling sugar and water mixture will burn the buds. They lost a lot of their typical aroma as a result.
- Wash the lemon and cut into thin slices.
- Place the elderflowers and lemon slices in a large bowl and pour the syrup over them.
- Cover airtight and let steep for at least 24 hours.
- Pour everything through a cheesecloth. The elderflowers and lemons remain.
- Sterilize bottles in boiling water for 10 minutes.
- Boil the elderflower syrup again in a saucepan.
- Pour into hot bottles and seal immediately.
Boil the elderflower syrup
Due to the high sugar content, additional canning of the syrup is not necessary. If you have worked properly, the hot syrup, filled into sterilized bottles, will keep for at least a year in a dark, not too warm place.
tips
Dry some elderflower as a gentle tea for coughs and colds. To do this, place the cleaned cones on a grate in an airy place.