Elderflower cordial rates pretty highly in my book for a few reasons; it’s delicious, goes spectacularly well with Gin and, the best reason of all, I can make it myself with a few simple ingredients and a little bit of hedgerow foraging (Home Front Solution #41) and so can you with my handy little recipe.

Now if the idea of hunting around the bushes fills you with fear of poisonings and hospital trips, don’t worry. I’ve written up a handy guide to help.

How to spot Elderflowers.

They come from the Elder tree (shocker there) which grows on the edges of paths and hedgerows, about 5 to 10 foot high. The flowers are distinguished by their creamy white colour and they appear end of May, beginning of June.

For the best cordial, you want elderflowers that are:

• Colour: Light Creamy/Pale Yellow Colour (Avoid the browner ones as they won’t taste as nice)
• Shape: One bunch will have a lot of tiny flowers, the flower themselves no bigger than 2-3mm. They grow from slender green stalks that break in to florets with the flowers at the end. The stems inside are a yellow colour, not brown.
• Smell: It’s sweet, floral and summery. If they smell musty, move on.

Added tips:
Try not to pick wet elderflower as it means damp pollen and it alters the taste and also take a stick with you, sometimes they can be hard to reach.

So now you’ve identified your main ingredient, you’ll be wanting to know how you make the delicious nectar and here is my tried and tested recipe:

Now enjoy! Like I said above it goes excellently with gin and tonic or with a little soda water and mint for a refreshing non alcoholic cocktail.

This blog falls into our Dig for Victory series which is all about food, whether it’s growing, cooking or storing. Find out more about this series and our others at on our Overview blog or find more in the same series by pressing the “Dig for Victory” tab on the menu.

Dig for Victory 41. Forage and feed May Recipe Recipe