What is elderflower syrup suitable for?
Whether as a honey or sugar substitute in tea, for flavoring cakes to the classic elderberry lemonade. You can use your homemade elderflower syrup in many ways in the kitchen. For a refreshing soda, mix it with mineral water in a 1:3 ratio. The delicious lemonade not only tastes great to children, but also contains only natural ingredients.
A real classic: elderflower syrup with sparkling wine or prosecco*. This simple but delicious welcome drink is great for summer parties.
More ideas on how to use your homemade elderflower syrup:
- Elderflower ice cream
- Elderflower sauce
- on pancakes (substitute for maple syrup)
- as a fruity sweetener in tea or smoothie
- for flavoring cakes or creams.
Hugo – The Tyrolean cult cocktail with elderberry
Homemade elderflower syrup literally screams for a freshly made hugo. So forgo the creepy ready-made mixes and whip up the refreshing and delicious classic welcome treat for your guests in no time.
You can find the original recipe for a Hugo here >
Properly disinfect the bottles for syrup
Cleanliness has the highest priority in the preparation of syrup. Otherwise, harmful bacteria and mold can spread and ruin all your efforts. Therefore, boil your syrup again before bottling to kill any bacteria that may have settled in the last three days. To prevent your elderflower syrup from becoming bitter, remove the flowers and lemon slices beforehand.
Bacteria can also sit on the inside of the bottles, which can later spread in the syrup. It is therefore important that you either boil the bottles beforehand or sterilize them in the oven (approx. 10 minutes at 150 °C). Attention: Separate the brackets from the false beforehand. The rubber gasket can’t take the heat.
The simplest variant is rinsing with active oxygen cleaners from brewery supplies. These kill bacteria with the help of active oxygen and are popular among hobby brewers. I have used this cleaner successfully for years to clean the bottles for my homemade kombucha before bottling.
How long is the shelf life of elderflower syrup
How long your homemade elderflower syrup will keep depends a lot on the storage conditions. It is best to store it constantly cool and in a dark place. The refrigerator is perfect for this and will keep your syrup fresh for up to a year unopened.
Why did my elderflower syrup turn bitter?
If your syrup has a noticeable bitter note, it is almost always because the stems were not cleanly separated from the flowers. Especially in the thick stems sit many tannins that can get into the syrup during production. Therefore, be sure to cleanly separate the flowers from the stems.
Another reason could be that you boiled up the lemon peel as well. It also contains bitter substances that pass into the brew when it is boiled and bring an unpleasant bitter note to the syrup.
