Well, I thought that when I post something, it might be useful to also give some details as to how I made it. It can also act as a kind of technical diary for me, which’ll be useful when I’m embroidering or dyeing fabric.
Elderflower Cordial
Ingredients
30 elderflower heads
6 pints (approx. 3 litres) of boiling water
2lb (900g) caster sugar
1 packet of citric acid (available from chemists)
6 lemons
Method
1. Gently rinse over the elderflowers.
2. Pour the boiling water over the sugar in a very large mixing bowl. Stir well and leave to cool.
3. Add the citric acid and lemons sliced, and then the flowers.
4. Leave in a cool place for 24 hours, stirring occasionally.
5. Strain through some muslin or a fine sieve, and bottle. Alternatively freeze in ice-cube trays. The cordial will last about two weeks, if kept in the fridge.
Home-made crystallised fruit:
Take four large oranges, and peel them carefully, taking the pith with the peel.
Cover them in boiling water, and boil for 15 minutes. Drain. Repeat this procedure at least twice again, until there’s no bitterness in the pith, and the skin is soft. Drain and cut into strips when cool enough to handle.
Dissolve 300g sugar into 150ml water, stirring over a low heat until the sugar has dissolved. Add the strips of peel, and boil gently until all the sugar syrup has been absorbed (keep watching at the very end, so that the peel doesn’t brown).
Cool, and roll in granulated sugar, then store in jars. Or dip in bitter chocolate, and use as a sweetmeat.
Recipe for Fruit Jellies (Apricot)
To do this, you first need to puree your fruit. I used dried apricots, soaked them overnight, simmered them in fresh water, and then strained and blended them. I wish, in retrospect, I’d used the more expensive organic dried apricots without preservatives, though, as the puree had a slight aftertaste. If you’re using fresh fruit, then this isn’t a problem.
Next, simmer your fruit puree with about 8oz of granulated sugar until all the sugar is dissolved.
Then, take either agar-agar, or gelatine as your jelly base, and, measuring your fruit syrup, add three times as much as the directions instruct you to. I used four tablespoons of agar-agar for just over one pint of syrup.
Chill, until set, and when set cut into squares and roll in caster sugar.
Making Halva
The recipe I borrowed from used american measurements, but this makes a lot of halva, so I’d halve them for a family of four.
1 cup water
1 1/2 cups milk
1 1/2 cups sugar (or less)
1 cinnamon stick
1/2 cup butter
1 cup semolina flour (fine milled semolina)
1 tsp rosewater/vanilla pod (optional)
Combine the water, milk and sugar in a saucepan, and add the cinnamon stick and vanilla pod (if using). Cook gently until sugar is dissolved, then bring to the boil, and remove from heat – take out the pod and stick at this point.
Heat the butter in another saucepan until it’s melted and just bubbling (but not brown). Reduce heat to very gentle, and add the semolina gradually, stirring all the time until the mixture is thick and smooth.
Allow the mixture to brown very slightly, then add the hot sugar and milk mixture, gradually, and stirring all the time. Add the rosewater, then stir over a low heat constantly until the mixture is very thick. Make sure it doesn’t stick.
Turn out into a pretty bowl and garnish with raisins, almonds or walnuts. It can be served hot or cold.
Very Easy Fudge Recipe
This can be found here. Just remember to keep stirring so the mixture doesn’t stick.
Christmas Stockings
Basic instructions on how to make these can be found here. I’ll add a template outline and diagrams presently.
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