June 06, 2010

Let's be European!


I had the good fortune of receiving a gift from Sandra all the way in Switzerland. (I got super lucky on Giveaway Day and won her drawing in addition to Megs!) She sent me a book, the Crafter's Companion, and four beautiful green fabrics. I so enjoy receiving fabrics from other countries! They are usually fabrics that don't make it to the US, so I feel very special having them in my stash. I can pretend I'm worldly.  Thank you Sandra!


I also enjoy yummy Swiss chocolate, a sweet extra that Sandra included, and I guess my daughter does too. Check out the blur of motion as she swooped in to steal a chocolate during my photo shoot.


This weekend I made elderflower syrup. My husband and I planted two different strains a couple years ago. Thus far we have left all the flowerheads to produce berries. This year the plants are three times as big as last year and completely unwieldy and I decided they could spare a few. I felt a little overwhelmed trying to process all the berries last year so I can only imagine what this year will be like. Plus, I've read lots of praise for the delicate flavor of elderflower syrup (mostly from Europeans - see where I'm going here?). I intend to mix my syrup with some club soda for a refreshing drink once we all stop complaining about the rain and start complaining about the heat.

In case you also have a yard being overtaken by these beasts, here is how I made mine. I haven't tasted it yet so we'll be in this experiment together.

Ingredients:
1.5 cups water
1.5 cups sugar
1 lemon, thinly sliced
8-10 elderberry flower heads. Be sure the blooms have opened but none have started to brown. Inspect for and remove any debris or bugs. Do not rinse.


Combine sugar and water in a saucepan, simmer together until all sugar is dissolved. This is a "simple syrup". Let it cool to lukewarm. Pile the elderflowers and lemons in a clean glass jar. Pour the syrup over them. Leave in a sunny location for 2-3 days, then strain out the flowers and lemons. Store in the refrigerator. I'll let you know how it turns out!

2 comments:

Unknown said...

Looks yummy! And the fabrics do too! Happy Quilting!

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Sandra said...

I just picket some myself today as we make this sirup every year and love it. But I reheat the sirup after the 2-3 day "maturing" before storing in glass bottles to be able to conserve it longer.
I`m glad you like the book and fabric!

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