Elderflowers...champagne, wine and cordial

May and June sees the Elder  trees around us in Charente in full blossom. The blossoms are  beautiful delicate little bunches of flowers. They are known for probably having more uses than any other single species of blossom.

Its useful that the Elder tree is very prolific so its very easy to find a plentiful supply of the blossom....the flowers are best picked on a sunny morning.
Try not to strip the tree and leave some blossom to become the elderberries...the fruits are later in July and August.

It has been said that the elderflowers can be eaten straight from the tree...mmm...not fancied or tried that one so I can't comment.

The flowers can be put in the base of a glass and pour over white wine or lemonade. The flowers will fragrance the drink.
You can also just flavour some water with them.....pour boiling water over the flowers and leave to cool. Then remove the flowers and filter the liquid. Serve cold with ice cubes.

DEEP FRIED ELDERFLOWERS

Deep fried flower bunches are delicious and easy. All that is needed is a thin batter of 4 tablespoons of plain flour, one egg and water to mix. Make sure your elderflower heads are clean of bugs....just give them a shake. Never wash them as this removes the fragrance.
Dip the flower heads by their stalks into the batter...strain off any excess ..and then plunge into the hot oil and deep fry till golden. Eat immediately! You will want to anyway!!!!


ELDERFLOWER CHAMPAGNE

The most popular use for the flowers is to make champagne, sparkling wine or cordial.
There are may different recipes for the champagne but the one I have tried is from the Jonathan Wallace....Self sufficient in Suburbia site. This one needs to be left for ten weeks before it is ready to drink...it uses a lot more elderflowers than some and a lot less sugar.
It seems the ones that are ready to drink quicker have more sugar. I have not tried any others...and it will now be another 6 weeks before mine is ready so I can't yet comment on the quality..

I am really hoping this lives up to its reputation!!!!

you will need....

a 20 litre bucket with a lid
a carrier bag of elderflower bunches
juice and grated rind of 8 lemons
3 kgs of sugar
2 tablespoons of white wine vinegar.

Grolsch style bottles

Fill the bucket with cold water
Add the sugar and stir till dissolved.
Add all the other ingredients.
Stir well and leave with the lid on for 2 days

Strain well through a clean  muslin cloth or jelly bag.
Pour into sterilised jars and securely cap.

You may need to release the lid every so often as the champagne fizzes up......the bottles need to be strong glass or they may explode!!!

Leave for 10 weeks......I will let you know how this works out!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


ELDERFLOWER CORDIAL

you will need

1.5kg of sugar
20 elderflower heads
4 sliced lemons
1.8 litres of water
60 g of citric acid

Bring the water and sugar to boil in a large lidded pan
When it is cool add all the other ingredients and leave for 36 to 48 hours
Strain the liquid then heat it in a pan for about 5 minutes.
Pour into sterilised bottles

As this is a fresh mixture with no added preservatives it will only keep 2 to 3 weeks once the bottle is open(keep in the fridge). It may be wiser to use smaller bottles to prevent waste...depending on how quickly you think you would use it..
Some people actually put it into small plastic bottles and freeze it......however I avoid using plastic bottles wherever possible.



So that's the flowers...now we have the wait for the berries!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Eat weeds....free food

Its now two months since the last blog. Who said retired people twiddle their thumbs wondering what to do.
There really aren't enough hours in the day. We try and work on the principle of work rest and play....however the work bit seems to be continually poaching from the other two.
At this time of year there really isn't much choice.....miss the timing for sowing plating and picking and you have lost your future food supply.

EAT WEEDS....FREE FOOD

The only truly free food is the stuff you forage and eat raw...berries straight from the bush and leaves from weeds used in salad for example. If you have to add other ingredients to produce an edible meal then the meal isnt totally  free...only the item you have added to it. I often see quite elaborate recipes using "free food....by the time you have all these added ingredients it becomes quite an expensive dish.It may be worth noting how much it costs you to make something with your free food!!!

Back to WEEDS.....love them or hate them!!!

Weeding is the bane of the suburban gardener.Obviously in the vegetable patch you need to remove these so they are not overcrowding and taking the nutrition from whatever you are growing.  However some weeds  prove quite useful in the kitchen......its all down to taste and if you want to make the effort...and of course you can usually find a plentiful supply.
This is the first year that I have truly started looking at all the possibilities.

I have had this book a long time and used it as a reference but recently I found an amazing website called EAT WEEDS... by Robin Harford... gives lots of ideas, hints recipes and even runs foraging courses.  Recipes are current and although it is based on weeds in England....believe me most of them are the same over here in France. You can be as adventurous as you like or just take whatever is easy and available  for you and suits your lifestyle.  The advantage here in Charente is that there is less traffic pollution and greater restrictions in chemicals used in the fields as well as a lot of countryside which allows wild growth. Just remem

 DONT PICK FROM THE ROADSIDE
DONT PICK IN OBVIOUS DOG WALKING AREAS
PERMISSION IS NEEDED ON PRIVATE LAND
DONT OVERPICK....GIVE THE PLANTS AND SOMEONE ELSE A CHANCE
MOST PLANTS ARE BEST PICKED ON A SUNNY DAY AND IN THE MORNING WHEN THEY ARE FRESH

I am logging when certain weeds are at their best so therefore when to pick them, find the best area to pick them ( and not tell anyone!!!!) and try different recipes which would suit our lifestyle.

DANDELIONS

These can begin as early as March and whilst they are evident all year round they are most prolific April and May..  In french they are called PISSENLIT.  Which should warn you what it is good for!!!We know from our youth that it was called the "wet the bed" plant.due to its diuretic qualities. The Romans used them for medicinal purposes. It is of course one of the most profuse of weeds so there is a plentiful supply supply if you wish to use them.

LEAVES.....pick the smaller ones as they will not be so bitter. Use them directly in salads with a little dressing of olive oil and lemon juice. They are also nice with chopped bacon bits and roasted garlic on top.

PETALS AND FLOWER HEADS

This year I have made dandelion syrup to use as a cordial, dandelion burgers and cream of dandelion soup
I would recommend all of them...as anyone who knows me I will only make things that are quick, easy and tasty.All of the following are just that.

DANDELION SYRUP

Wash flowers and detach the petals from the leaves
put in a pan and cover with water.then  bring to the boil
Leave to infuse overnight in fridge
Filter through a fine sieve pressing with a spoon to get out all the liquid
Weight the liquid and for each gram add 0.95g of sugar. Or 1 pound of liquid equals 1 pound of sugar for the non metric of us!
Mix with a squirt of lemon juice and heat slowly until all the sugar is dissolved and the mixture becomes syrupy.
Filter again then store in sterilized bottles.
Use small bottles as once they are opened the syrup will only last a few weeks.
Dilute the syrup with water to drink.

DANDELION BURGERS

Oh yes...really....and you know what... they were brilliant. Will certainly make more of these next year to freeze.

you need...

1 cup of plain flour, 1 cup of dandelion petals, 1 egg, 1/4 cup of milk, half a cup of onions, crushed garlic salt and pepper.

Mix all the dry ingredients together then add milk until you have a firm but not too sticky consistency. Make into shape of burgers and then fry  in a pan till lightly brown.

This is the basic recipe but you can also add seasoning of your own choice depending on your taste.
Oregano
Basil
Mixed herbs
Turmeric
Cumin

I added... Ras El Hanut....which is  Morrocan mixed spices.

Easy quick and tasty

CREAM OF DANDELION SOUP

4 cups of dandelion leaves
2 cups of petals
2 cups buds
1 cup chopped onions
6 cloves of garlic

Boil the dandelion leaves in 6 cups of water....strain and repeat if leaves are large and bitter.
Saute onions and garlic
Add 4 cups of water plus leaves buds and petals
Season with salt and pepper
Simmer for about half an hour
Just before serving add some cream

This is the basic recipe but I personally found it a little bland and thin.  I added some mixed herbs. a stock cube to season it and some chucks of potato to thicken it up.
I also served it with parmesan croutons on top.
Again...I think you can add other seasonings until you find the kind of taste that you like.

We played a game with some of our guests ....guess the flavour of soup!!!! They loved the flavour and were suggesting all kinds of vegetables....mostly green ones as this soup is very green....They were really surprised when they found out it was dandelion and thoroughly enjoyed it!!!

I have since found several other recipes which I will try out next year....Blossom bread and easy wine!!! They will be on the list for next year