Kirstie's Handmade Britain

Rosie Davies showed Kirstie Allsopp how to pack the perfume of elderflowers into this sweet cordial on Kirstie's Handmade Britain

• 3-4 large unwaxed lemons (can also be made with limes)
• 6-8 clean young elderflower heads
• 1kg granulated sugar
• 25g citric acid
• 15g tartaric acid
• 15g Epsom salts
• 900ml boiling water

1. Wash and dry the lemons. Gently rinse the elderflowers in cold water if necessary.

2. Finely grate the lemon rinds into a very large bowl. Add the lemon juice, sugar, citric acid, tartaric acid and Epsom salts, then add the elderflowers.

3. Pour on the boiling water and stir until completely dissolved. Cover and leave until cold, preferably overnight.

4. The next day, strain through a very fine sieve or piece of clean muslin and bottle in sterilised bottles. Seal tightly and store in a cool place. Once opened keep in the fridge.

5. To serve, dilute the cordial with fizzy water and serve over ice with a slice or two of lemon or sprig of mint. For grown-ups add a shot of gin or vodka and a lemon slice, or add it to white wine and sparkling water to make an elderflower spritzer.

Cook's tips

Wash the bottles out with a solution of Milton if they are dirty and dry in a cool oven. Otherwise fill them with boiling water and leave to stand for 5 minutes before emptying.

There are lots of recipes that are made without the tartaric acid and the Epsom salts, but they don’t keep quite so well as this one.

Elderflower cordial is also brilliant in recipes such as gooseberry fool and in vinaigrette - mix with wine vinegar, Dijon mustard, salt, pepper and a light olive oil (surprisingly good with a courgette, lettuce and broad bean salad).

Try adding it to a marinade for chicken breasts or in sorbets, in ice-creams, or over scoops of vanilla ice cream, or use it to sweeten and flavour the fruit for a crumble.

Recipe by Rosie Davies