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  5. Home-made elderflower syrup

Home-made elderflower syrup

Elderflower syrup has been steadily growing in popularity ever since the refreshing Hugo aperitif started appearing on the drinks menu of many bars. You can make elderflower syrup yourself for next to nothing. We show you how here.

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Picking elderflower

If you don't have your own elderberry bush in the garden where you can pick the flowers, you can take a look around your local park or in forest clearings. As the shrub is not too demanding of the soil, it can be found in many areas in our surroundings. However, you should only pick the flowers at noon when the sun is shining to harness the full aroma. The sale of the flowers at weekly markets is also becoming increasingly common.

Elderflower syrup

Ingredients

To make about 1.5 litres of syrup you need:

  • Roughly 20 elderflower umbels (without the stem!)
  • 500 g organic lemons
  • 10 to 20 g citric acid
  • One litre of water
  • 1 kg of sugar
elderflower

Elderflower syrup

Method

Step 1: Wash the elderflower thoroughly. Boil the water in a large pot and dissolve the sugar in it, then add the citric acid.

Step 2: Wash the lemons in hot water and cut into slices. Then add the sliced lemons and umbels to the sugar water.

Step 3: Cover the mixture and allow it to infuse for 3 days, stirring occasionally.

Step 4: Filter the mixture through a fine sieve, then bring the syrup to the boil once again and pour it into clean bottles while hot.

You can store the unopened bottles in a cool and dark place for up to one year.

Gift idea

When stored in beautifully decorated bottles, the home-made syrup is the perfect gift to take along to any garden party!

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Possible uses of elderflower syrup

The syrup, diluted one part syrup to four parts water, offers a floral refreshment on hot summer days. If you like to round off the evening with an aperitif, you can enjoy the golden syrup in a Hugo with Prosecco, sparkling water and mint. Elderflower syrup can also be added to desserts in an infinite number of ways. It is a realistic alternative for those who love to indulge their sweet tooth: in ice cream, to sweeten yoghurt and quark dishes, in cakes or combined with fruit!

Colourful variety in cooking

Edible flowers

Flowers are not only wonderful to look at, you can also eat them: Find out which flowers you can eat and how you can use the flowers as an edible decoration at your next garden party here.

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