Elderberry Cordial
My two favourite descriptions of the common cold in literature:
Mrs Van Hopper in Daphne Du Maurier's novel Rebecca comes down with a 'sore throat and a rather high temperature' while staying in Monte Carlo. The place had begun to bore her, so she revels in the fuss, sympathy, visits, messages, and flowers. Under strict orders not to leave her bed, the nurse gives her injections and a 'light massage' and she luxuriates in her illness, 'propped up in bed with a falling temperature, her best bed jacket round her shoulders and be-ribboned boudoir cap upon her head'. In Thomas Hardy's The Woodlanders, Marty is much more ill: 'I've three headaches going on in my head at the same time [...] a rheumatic headache in my poll, a sick headache over my eyes, and a misery headache in the middle of my brain.' Despite this, she goes out into the cold to help Giles Winterborne plant trees. As she says to him, 'I thought you might be waiting and grumbling like anything if I was not there.'
If, like Marty, you don't have the luxury of a fortnight bed, this cordial is for you. I make it each September and try to drink a spoonful each day over winter. Sometimes I pour a tablespoonful into a mug of hot water, with a dash of honey. Elderberries are rich in Vitamin C and have been used for medicinal purposes for centuries. Here, I've infused the berries with a range of spices to give a warming feeling that soothes the sorest throat and cloaks aching muscles in something akin to Mrs Van Hopper's best bed jacket. If only I could offer a flask to poor Marty...
The cordial is actually very simple to make: gathering the berries is the most time-consuming task, but combine it with an early autumnal walk and it will be a pleasurable activity. Take a friend and a stick along with you: it's helpful to have someone hook the high branches so you can focus on cutting the stems. Cut from the main branch below the point at which the berries branch off into smaller forks.
When you've cooked the berries, simply leave them to drip through muslin/a jelly bag overnight. Collect the juices in the morning, heat with sugar until slightly thickened, and decant into a glass bottle. Store in a cool, dark place and consume over the winter to keep colds at bay.
Makes about 500ml of cordial (1 pint).
Ingredients
Equipment
Method
1. Use a fork to release the berries from the main stems. You can leave the smaller stems attached, since the whole mixture will be strained later. Remove as many of the green berries as you can, keeping just the dark berries.
My two favourite descriptions of the common cold in literature:
Mrs Van Hopper in Daphne Du Maurier's novel Rebecca comes down with a 'sore throat and a rather high temperature' while staying in Monte Carlo. The place had begun to bore her, so she revels in the fuss, sympathy, visits, messages, and flowers. Under strict orders not to leave her bed, the nurse gives her injections and a 'light massage' and she luxuriates in her illness, 'propped up in bed with a falling temperature, her best bed jacket round her shoulders and be-ribboned boudoir cap upon her head'. In Thomas Hardy's The Woodlanders, Marty is much more ill: 'I've three headaches going on in my head at the same time [...] a rheumatic headache in my poll, a sick headache over my eyes, and a misery headache in the middle of my brain.' Despite this, she goes out into the cold to help Giles Winterborne plant trees. As she says to him, 'I thought you might be waiting and grumbling like anything if I was not there.'
If, like Marty, you don't have the luxury of a fortnight bed, this cordial is for you. I make it each September and try to drink a spoonful each day over winter. Sometimes I pour a tablespoonful into a mug of hot water, with a dash of honey. Elderberries are rich in Vitamin C and have been used for medicinal purposes for centuries. Here, I've infused the berries with a range of spices to give a warming feeling that soothes the sorest throat and cloaks aching muscles in something akin to Mrs Van Hopper's best bed jacket. If only I could offer a flask to poor Marty...
The cordial is actually very simple to make: gathering the berries is the most time-consuming task, but combine it with an early autumnal walk and it will be a pleasurable activity. Take a friend and a stick along with you: it's helpful to have someone hook the high branches so you can focus on cutting the stems. Cut from the main branch below the point at which the berries branch off into smaller forks.
When you've cooked the berries, simply leave them to drip through muslin/a jelly bag overnight. Collect the juices in the morning, heat with sugar until slightly thickened, and decant into a glass bottle. Store in a cool, dark place and consume over the winter to keep colds at bay.
Makes about 500ml of cordial (1 pint).
Ingredients
- 800g elderberries, washed
- 600ml water
- 2 tsp ground ginger
- 1 small piece of fresh ginger
- 1½ tsp ground cinnamon
- 2 sticks cinnamon
- 1 tsp cloves
- 1½ tsp allspice
- 1½ tsp ground nutmeg
- Granulated sugar and/or honey (for quantities, see below)
Equipment
- Muslin (and large rubber band) or jelly bag
- Large saucepan
- Approx. 500ml sterilised glass bottle (see my sterilising guidance here)
Method
1. Use a fork to release the berries from the main stems. You can leave the smaller stems attached, since the whole mixture will be strained later. Remove as many of the green berries as you can, keeping just the dark berries.
2. Wash the elderberries and then put them into a large heavy bottomed saucepan with the water and all the fresh and ground spices. Bring to the boil and simmer for 30 minutes. Use a potato masher to mash the softened fruit to release the final juices.
3. Ladle the mixture onto a piece of taut muslin (or a jelly bag). Let it drip through of its own accord for at least 8 hours, and preferably overnight.
4. Measure the amount of juice. For each 550ml of juice, you need 350g granulated sugar. (From my 800g elderberries, I ended up with 550ml juice and I used 300g sugar and 50g honey). Firstly, heat the juice in a saucepan until it is warm. Then, dissolve the sugar gently over a low heat. Once dissolved, bring it to the boil and boil for 10 minutes or until thickened.
5. Pour straight away into a sterilised bottle. Store in a cool place.