Elderflower Syrup Recipe

Name: Elderflower Syrup Recipe
Prep time: 3 min
Cook time: 1 min
Total time: 4 min
Yield: 5
Cuisine: Switzerland
Ingredients: 1 litre water; 1 kg granulated sugar; 20 g citric acid; 23 elderflowers (large)

Summer is here and the elderflower season is in full swing! Make the most of this opportunity to create your own elderflower syrup.

Elderflower syrup is a delightful summer treat that brings this season to life. It’s the perfect opportunity to pick the beautiful blooms and turn them into a delicious syrup. Elderflower season runs from May to June, and the flowers are in full bloom for only a very short time. It’s therefore important to harvest and process the flowers quickly. It’s best to find a spot away from major roads, as this is the only way to ensure the elderflowers are nice and clean and fresh. With this simple recipe, you can make a tasty syrup in no time at all, whilst enjoying the aroma and flavour of the elderflowers.

The great thing about this recipe is that it’s flexible and can be adapted to suit your preferences. For example, you could add fresh lemon slices or ginger, making the syrup a wonderful treat during the colder months too. Elderberry has healing properties and is particularly valuable during flu season! If you combine it with ginger and lemon, you’ll have a truly healthy syrup that helps you recover quickly. But now back to the lovely warm summer months!

Whether you want to use the syrup as a base for cocktails or simply need a thirst-quenching drink during the hot days – this recipe is perfect for any occasion.

If you want to pick elderflowers, there are a few things to bear in mind. Elderflower umbels should be picked fresh – ideally after several days of sunshine and preferably before midday. Make sure the flowers are picked in a clean area, as they’re prone to getting dirty. It’s best to find a lovely walking trail surrounded by nature. Also make sure the flowers are fully open, as otherwise they won’t develop their full flavour profile. Give the blossoms a gentle shake on the spot to dislodge any insects, but not too hard, so that the precious pollen remains attached. You should also avoid washing the elderflowers.

What are you waiting for? Grab a basket and a pair of scissors and go foraging for elderflowers! After that, all you need is water, citric acid and sugar, and you’ll be able to make your own delicious elderflower syrup! You’re guaranteed to love it!

Key figures

Quantity: 2 litres

Cooking time: 3 to 4 minutes

Steeping time: 24 hours to 3 days

Difficulty: Easy

Shelflife: 1 year

Ingredients

Water		1 litre
Granulated sugar		1 kg
Citric acid		20 g
Elderflowers \| large		20–25

Place the elderflower umbels upside down on kitchen paper and leave the flowers to stand for about 1 to 2 hours. This allows any small insects to crawl out, should there still be any in the flowers. Please note: Under no circumstances should you wash the elderflowers, as this will cause them to lose a lot of pollen and, consequently, their flavour.

Making elderflower syrup

Bring the water and sugar to the boil in a saucepan. Now bring the syrup to the boil and let it boil vigorously for 1 to 2 minutes. Then add thecitric acid and stir it in. Citric acid ensures that the syrup keeps for a sufficiently long time and doesn’t go off. This makes homemade syrup an excellent gift.

Cut the small flower clusters off the stems. This is important because the larger stems contain bitter compounds, and of course we don’t want any of those in our syrup.

Once you’ve brought the sugar water to the boil, you can now add the umbels – which you’ve carefully separated beforehand – to the hot water, give them a quick stir and then cover with a lid. The flowers now need to steep in the sugar water for at least 24 hours. However, you can also leave them to steep at room temperature for up to 3 days.

Once you’ve left the syrup to infuse for long enough (the longer it infuses, the more intense the elderflower flavour will naturally be), you can pour it into a damp muslin cloth. It’s best to line a sieve with the cloth and hang it over a large saucepan. Then take the cloth in your hand and wring out the syrup thoroughly.

Next, bring the clear elderflower syrup back to the boil briefly and let it boil for 1–2 minutes.

In the meantime, prepare the syrup bottles as well. To do this, bring some water to the boil and fill the bottles to the brim with the boiling water. Then empty the bottles and fill them with the finished syrup whilst it is still hot. It’s best to use a funnel to help with this. Then seal the bottles immediately, turn them upside down once and leave them to stand for about 5 minutes.

You can now use the finished syrup to make all sorts of different recipes! How about, for example, a summery strawberry and elderflower tiramisu, a zesty, refreshing Hugo, or some strawberry and elderflower jam! Of course, you can also simply enjoy the syrup with mineral water and a few ice cubes, or in a cup of tea! We’ve got a few more recipes featuring delicious elderflower for you, which we hope you’ll enjoy! Be sure to give them all a go!

Storage & Shelf life

The finished syrup will keep for up to a year. It is best to store the syrup in a cool, dark place. Once you have opened the bottle, you must keep the opened bottle of syrup in the fridge.