Good Food Good Health -
Elderflower
Hi everyone, today I
have a great summer drink rich in Antioxidants which really are good for you,
yes its the common elderflower. The flowers are now in season and plentiful,
and it is really easy to harvest and produce yourself.
The elderflower has
been well known through the centuries for its high vitamin C content,
antioxidant and healing properties, and because of this is today one of the top
selling natural summer cordials.
Drinking a glass of
cordial daily is very refreshing and will help to improve your health, and it
is not just the flowers that are good for you but also the berries when made
into wine have equal beneficial properties.
We are all well aware
now just how important anti oxidants and vitamin C are, and I do not mean only
the ladies thinking about their skin and premature aging, but then maybe that
is why through the ages women have always made and drank elderflower cordials
and tea ritually, and is a staple product of the Women's Institute along with
jams.
Antioxidants are
needed to help reduce the production of 'free radicals' (highly re-active and
unstable molecules which contain atoms with unpaired electrons) in the body,
high fat diets attribute to 'free radicals', but they are also produced
naturally and especially in people who exercise heavily, attacking cells
leading to long term damage and a higher risk of cancer.
Studies have shown
that taking antioxidants such as vitamin C before eating high fat foods,
reduces the damage greatly to the arteries.
The elderflower is
well in bloom now and can be found in most hedgerows and roadsides, scrubland
and gardens alike, and to many gardeners is a nuisance as it grows almost
anywhere in a very short time to a considerable size.
The elder has acquired
the nickname of 'Nature's Medicine Chest', as its healing properties have been
used for a very wide and varied range of problems from Rheumatism, hay fever,
coughs and colds, asthma and influenza.
The elderflower is
only in bloom for about six weeks, from the end of May to the beginning of
July, but it is best picked now while the flowers are fresh and white and
before they turn creamy brown.
I remember making this
with my grandma every year, from collecting the flowers and berries to all the
smells associated with this. I still have the hand written recipe of this and
others by grandma, although I think some of these recipes are probably illegal
to make at home now, like the marrow rum, I will have to check up on this at a
later date. Ted is intrigued as to why you have to hang the marrow in a
stocking for this recipe, men!
The recipe to make 1.5
litres of Elderflower cordial is below, which you dilute to taste, is easy and
inexpensive, and is great served with fizzy water and ice. Perfect for the
summer.
Ingredients you need -
20 heads of elderflower, 1.8kg granulated sugar, 1.2 litres of water, 2 lemons
and 75g citric acid. Preparation time takes 20 minutes, plus overnight infusing
and 5 minutes cooking. Method. Shake the flowers to expel any insects and place
in large bowl.
Put sugar in pan with
water and bring to boil, stirring until sugar has dissolved. Pare zest off
lemons in wide strips and place in bowl with elderflower. Slice lemons
discarding ends and add slices to bowl. Pour over boiling syrup and stir in
citric acid. Cover with cloth and leave for 24 hours at room temperature. The
next day strain cordial through a muslin (or a new boil washed J cloth or
similar) and pour into thoroughly cleaned plastic or glass bottles with screw
on lids, and that is it.
There, that is not
that difficult is it, and it tastes so good served with a sprig of mint and a
slice of strawberry with fizzy water and ice, friends will not believe you have
made it yourself.
The elder is also used
as a natural garden insecticide, by crushing up and bruising the foul smelling
leaves you can leave them around young plants to deter aphids and caterpillars.
Obviously as they dry out and the smell disappears they need to be replaced.
Farmers used to hang
bunches of elderflower above their horses before insecticides were used to rid
flies, and dairy farmers used it as they thought it had properties to stop the
milk from turning sour. People used to wear a small sprig to keep midges away.
The elder has been
closely entwined with pagans through the years to summon spirits, with twigs
woven into head-dresses to enable the wearer to see spirits and undo evil
spells! The mind boggles.
On the Isle of Man,
every cottage has an elder growing outside its front door to ward off witches
even to this day. In other parts of the country, people would never burn elder
wood as it was said a member of the family would die. It was truly a revered
plant.
The great thing about
elderflower is that it tastes delicious, is highly refreshing and a good
provider of vitamin C - an antioxidant, so why not try making your own or buy a
good reputable manufactured cordial or juice and start getting the benefits for
your good health now.
This article was
composed by Sandra & Ted Wosko. We have always been interested in health
issues especially having children, and as with most people, we all suffer with
some type of ailment. We are always researching on more and more topics in the
endless task of gaining more knowledge to increase our expertise, benefiting
ourselves and other people alike. http://www.goodfoodgoodhealth.com
[http://www.goodfoodgoodhealthforyou.com]
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/expert/Ted_Wosko/87764
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