Elderflower syrup

Gin is my numero uno summer time drink and one of my favourite combinations, among many, is to add a splash of elderflower syrup (cordial) to a G&T. Having spotted a nearby elderflower tree was in bloom, I set about making my own syrup. I am always one for making life simple and as many online recipes require citric acid or other random ingredients, the recipe I've based my syrup on is this one, who in turn based hers on a Sophie Grigson one. Last years batch of syrup I made was a little sweet for my taste and so this time I decided to drastically cut down the amount of sugar involved.

Ingredients
5 large elderflower heads
350g granulated sugar
300ml water
1 lemon

Follow directions as explained in the link above.

And this is the final result:

To be honest it's still very sweet and if I get chance this year I'm definitely going to try making it again but with less sugar although I am tempted to give elderflower champagne a whirl too!

In the meantime, let's pray for the sun to come back out again and there'll be G&T&E's all round

The Ethicurean

It was a special mans special birthday this week, so on the hottest day of the year we cycled off into the depths of Somerset to the one of the most beautiful restaurants settings you'll ever see, The Ethicurean.

View of restaurant & walled garden

And in celebration, here is my first ever GIF.

Somerset Affogato

Introduction to forest gardening

Picture source

The idea is to replicate the natural soil structure above ground, the above photo is an example of 'lasagne' mulching. This amount of mulching only needs to be in the first instance, once established you should only need to add the top 3 layers year on year to upkeep the natural soil ecology.

Example of the principles in practice at St Werburghs City Farm. Photo was taken before for the final layer of mown grass was put on top.  To plant, first make a hole through the cardboard and add an extra handful of compost before placing into the space you've created.

Stretch it out

Photo source

City foraging

Wild garlic patches, Brandon Hill  My stash has since been turned into a number of glorious dishes as well as a huge pot of wild garlic pesto.  Top tip for pesto: use walnuts instead of pine nuts in the recipe, this discovery was a delicious accident when I couldn't find what I was after in the supermarket!

Sensory herb garden, Castle Park Bed after bed filled with beautiful smelling herbs, not too sure on the etiquette of picking these so only took a cheeky sprig of dill to spruce up a fish dinner.