Photo by Holly A. Heyser
Making your own elderflower cordial is a way to remember spring, even in the depths of winter. Elderflowers are the color of butter and smell sweet and just a bit spicy. Their beauty fades fast, however. You will need to pick them before noon, as the aroma fades once the afternoon sun hits the flowers. Time is also important: You want to make this liqueur within an hour or two of picking the flowers to get the best effect.
Mercifully, it could not be easier. Simply pick off enough flowers to loosely fill a quart Mason jar and pour over your alcohol.
- Snip the flowers off the stalks into a quart Mason jar. Remember the stalks and leaves of elderberry plants are toxic, so snip off as much of the stems as you can. Getting them all is not possible, but spend some time removing the stems.
- Cover the flowers with the alcohol and seal. What alcohol? Your choice, really. Typical is 80-proof vodka, but I prefer 100-proof vodka. And once a year I use Everclear or some other 151-plus proof alcohol. Why? The flavors and aromas of elderflowers are not all extractable by water, or alcohol for that matter. I find that the higher the alcohol content, the cleaner and purer the elderflower flavor. Of course, if you use Everclear, you will need to cut the liqueur with lots of water or ice — otherwise it will knock you down in a hurry.
- You will want to submerge the flowers completely in the alcohol. If you don’t, the top layer of flowers will oxidize from contact with air, turning brown. This doesn’t harm your liqueur, and for years I made it this way and it was fine. But a better way to do it is to use a narrow-necked jar and fit another, smaller jar into the opening to create an airlock. Or, you can weigh the flowers down with a small plate or jar lid or something.
- Keep in a cool, dark place for as long as you like, but at least a few days. I typically hold mine a month.
- Strain twice. First through a fine-meshed strainer to remove the flowers and debris. Then strain it again through the same strainer, only with a piece of paper towel set inside it. This second straining removes very fine particulates, like the pollen. You can skip this second straining, but your liqueur will be cloudy.
- For a quart’s worth, add between 1/4 cup and 1/2 cup sugar, depending on how sweet you want it. Seal the jar again and shake well to combine. If you are using Everclear, a good way to get the sugar into the liqueur — and dilute it enough to make it drinkable — is to mix the sugar with an equal volume of water, heat it until the sugar is completely dissolved, cool it back to room temperature, and then add it to the liqueur.
- Put the jar back in the pantry, and shake it from time to time until the sugar has dissolved. When it is, you are ready to drink it. It will last forever.
Elderflower liqueur is especially good ice cold on a hot summer’s afternoon, or neat during winter. Keep in mind the liqueur will darken as it ages into a deep amber. This is normal.
Hank, do you rinse the elderflowers first? If not, how do you keep from making “bug” liqueur, or does it matter? I did a little foraging this morning, and my umbrels are pretty buggy.
No, I do not rinse the flowers first, as this washes away a lot of aroma. I choose bugless umbels, or pick the few critters out that I find when I get home. They will die under the alcohol or boiling syrup anyway…
I’ve followed your instructions and note that the flowers at the top have gone brown, looks a bit pond-like! Should I remove these or is it all part of the process. The lower flowers have retained their colour.
Madeline: Yep, mine did that, too. I pulled them off — it is oxidation from the flowers’ contact with air. Nothing to get too worried about, but it might affect the flavor a bit.
[...] cordial around this sort of time each year. This year, I’m also planning to have a go at elderflower vodka as well for something tasty to last a little [...]
[...] I’m growing very slowly and gradually in the stuff I eat from hedgerows. I urge everyone to make their own elderflower cordial at around about this time each year. It’s really easy, the ingredients are easy to find, and elderflowers are everywhere in England at least. My recipe is here. This year I also have some elderflower gin which needs to steep in a darkened place for another few weeks yet, and which I will report on in the fullness of time. Loosely based on this recipe. [...]
[...] Elderflower Liquor by Hunder, Angler, Gardener, [...]
Hi Hank, great recipe. I had seen an old French recipe which included slices of orange and lemon and also the peels, plus Grand Marnier. But I couldn’t find it again so I have started with yours as a base recipe.
I picked so many umbrels that there wasn’t enough of the brandy alcohol to cover them. So I panicked and threw in a pint of Absolut, all I had. That didn’t do it either so I tossed in a bottle of “fruit alcohol” (a cheap kind of grappa used for preserving fruits), and then a cup or so of Grand Marnier. In my quest to use all the elderflowers I had collected I am afraid I wrecked everything with this chemistry experiment.
What do you think? Is this ratafia salvageable, or should it henceforth only be used for “medicinal” (hmmm!) purposes?
[...] The second recipe I have tried this year with the elderflower has been an elderflower liqueur recipe from Hunter, Angler, Gardener, Cook :http://honest-food.net/veggie-recipes/sweets-and-syrups/elderflower-liqueur/ [...]
Thank you for these directions. I am going to make this tomorrow. I have been making Elderberry tincture for many years, but never Elderflower liqeur. I have a question about the last direction you gave (#7). You said to (make a simple syrup) heat the sugar solution until it dissolves, which is what I do for herbal syrups, but then you say to use the finished product, turning it in the closet or wherever, until the sugar dissolves. I know I will be able to just work through it once I am doing it, but thought I would ask you about this anyway, if you don’t mind.
Thanks so much!
Catharine
Santa Cruz, CA, US
Hi,
It is now well past elderflower season here, and I really wanted to make lelderflower liquer, could I do it with elderflower cordial? My mum always makes lots of the stuff and although its really good, for some reason nobody really drinks it! Could anyone suggest a recipe?
Thanks
Hi, I discovered Elderflower Liqueur this summer and would like to try and make my own. I live in New Orleans and we do not grown Elderflower here. DO you think it would be possible to make the liqueur with dried organic flowers? I have found a source.
Thanks
Claudia
New Orleans
Claudia: I’ve never done it, but I’ve found the aroma of dried elderflowers kinda stale and unpleasant. If your dried elderflowers smell wonderful, go ahead. But I would not buy them without smelling them first.
[...] lot more than I needed, I decided to make an (alcoholic) elderflower liqueur as well with help from this recipe. There are recipes out there that have you using citric acid, which helps deter the growth of mold [...]