Sip of Summer
A few years ago, we took a dream-come-true vacation to the Isle of Skye in Scotland. I had been longing and planning for this trip for many years and it more than lived up to our expectations; for those of you who don’t know us personally, much of our traveling, state side or otherwise, revolves around taking in the local flavors, and without a doubt, we opt for edibles we haven’t tasted before or can’t get easily at home.
One of the few places to eat near our air B&B was a charming pie shop called Skye Pie. It has since ceased to exist but what a gem it was!
I could write an entire blog on the warm mouth hug every single thing we ordered there gave us, but it’s the Elderflower Pressé that I’m here to talk about today.
Just seeing the word “Pressé” snuggled next to “Elderflower” tickled my mind with delight. I didn’t even know for sure what an elderflower was, but the arrangement of letters was so lovely, I had to give it a try.
When the glass bottle, labeled with delicate line artwork and bubbles pressed against its neck, clanked down on our table, I knew I was about to experience something special. The cap had to be popped off with a bottle opener and the contents gave a lovely little sigh, and then I took my first sip. Sweet, floral, citrus, waves of refreshment fizzled over my tongue and ended with the slightest lemony pucker; this was the taste of summer bottled in glass. Before the last drop was swallowed, I wanted more and just like that, my beverage world expanded; I became obsessed with taking this bit of our trip back home with me.
Elderflower Presse is fairly easy to procure in the UK, every Tesco has it stocked, and we brought a few bottles home in our luggage. Almost all our souvenirs are hard to get edibles, but I quickly discovered it would be much more challenging to find this treat once I was stateside. Now-a-days, there are a few places that carry it so if you want to give it a try before planting an Elder orchard, you can, but several years ago, there weren’t any options for purchasing that didn’t include a hefty shipping expense, so I came to the conclusion that if I wanted a regular supply of elderflower pressé, I was going to have to grow my own Elders.
I have zero regrets about my crazy intentionality for planting Elders. They are a quick growing, shrub with vibrant green boughs frothing with white umbrella flowers that transform to glossy, black berries. We purchased a sapling from American Meadows and two years later, I started making my own Elderflower Cordial for Pressé as well as drying it for teas and adding it to homemade skincare. Elder is a powerhouse of flavor and healing.
If you want to try making your own Elderflower Pressé, wait til the flower heads are open and pearly white, if they yellow or brown they are too ripe. Allow them to set for a moment to encourage bugs to leave, being careful not to squash any as they can distort the flower flavor. Do not wash the flower as the pollen is what gives the floral flavor. Remove the tiny flowers and discard any leaves or stems, American Elderberry does not have the same toxicity as it’s European cousin, so as long as your Elder is of the Canadensis variety, there’s no need to be super picky about not leaving tiny stem bits. However, if you are using a different variety, then be carefully to only use the flower heads as the rest of the plant is toxic to humans. Below is a recipe for making the syrup you can then mix with seltzer or club soda or even presecco to make a refreshing glass of pressé.
Elderflower Cordial
This is basically an infused simple (1:1) syrup.
1 kilogram of Sugar
1 liter of Water
The zest of two lemons
Two sliced lemons
50 grams (1/4 cup) of Citric Acid
20-30 Elderflower Heads
opt: lemon can be replaced with other citrus fruits; add some vanilla bean or extract for a warmer note; add other spices or herbs such a juniper or basil to add variety
In a large pot, stir together the water, sugar, lemon zest, lemon slices, and citric acid; bring to a boil; while syrup is boiling, clip the flower heads of your Elderflower off into a bowl; Once the syrup boils, turn the flame off and allow to cool to below 165 degrees; add your elderflowers and stir; cover the pot and allow to cool to room temperature than place in the fridge to steep over night or at least 12 hours then strain. Your syrup can be stored in the fridge for about a month or frozen for 6 months.
Elderflower Pressé
1tsp of elderflower cordial
8 oz of chilled seltzer
lemon slice to garnish
stir & enjoy!
Elderflower Fizz
Glass of ice
2tsp of elderflower cordial
8 oz of meyer lemon seltzer (Betty Buzz)
juice of 1 lime
a shot of gin liquor (Pomp & Whimsey)
Stir together and garnish with Elderflowers, enjoy!
