Wednesday 27 June 2007

Lavender Cordial

I'm just trying this recipe out as I write! I came across this on a discussion forum: http://www.nigella.com/your_page/topic.asp?p_id=289371 and just loved the enthusiasm of the participants. :)

The recipe is:

110g Golden Granulated sugar
50 lavender flowers
300 ml water

Put the water and sugar into a pan and heat gently until the sugar has dissolved completely. Add the lavender flowers and bring to the boil. Remove from the heat; cover the pan and leave to infuse for 30-45 minutes. Strain the liquid into a pan and reheat, stirring all the time, until the mixture is syrupy. Cool completely. Pour into a sterilised bottle, seal tightly and leave to cool. Store in the refrigerator. Dilute with chilled sparkling mineral water.

Ok, so here are the results. Personally I don't like it, it's just too flowery and sweet (and I'm quite a sweet tooth). As my friend Alexandros said, it's a bit like drinking pot pourri. LOL I'm wondering though if it might work when mixed with a completely different flavour. I tried squeezing half a lime into a glass of the cordial with sparkling water. It's a bit better, but still not right. Hmm... mint perhaps?

I'm also wondering if it would be better with some citric acid in. The best cordial recipes I've seen so far are the ones from Thorncroft (see my post on Nettle Cordial as an example) that all contain citric acid. Wikipedia says that citric acid "is a natural preservative and is also used to add an acidic (sour) taste to foods and soft drinks." This might help with the floweryness. If, and it's a big IF at the moment, I try this again then I'll definitely add in the citric acid.
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