All the elderflowers around at the moment have me in the mood for cordial. Elderflower cordial is a staple on my kitchen shelf – I don’t have cupboards lest I forget what’s in them. My brand of choice has always been Belvoir. It’s just lusciously syrupy and perfect for baking with. I used it on The Great British Bake Off for my Elderflower and Honeycomb Tarts.
Belvoir was founded by Lord John Manners and the elderflower cordial was the first to be made by his wife Mary in the 70s. As with many small foodie businesses, the process started in her kitchen but since then Belvoir have grown and now expanded their range of cordials to sixteen varieties.
I received their Rose and Raspberry Cordial to try as I am a big fan of this combination. It’s made from real pressed raspberry juice and fresh rose petal extract from Turkey.
There isn’t an overwhelming rose flavour so if you are using this in baking then you’ll need to add some rosewater too. It was lovely drizzled into the cream for this easy Rose and Raspberry Millefeuille
Rose and Raspberry Millefeuille
I also had a go at the Raspberry Blush recipe on the Belvoir website. It was rather lush.
Image Copyright Belvoir Fruit Farms
It is actually lovely as just a cordial. As the sun has decided to come out today, I made a Raspberry and Rose Granita too which was simply a pint glass of water with 3 tablespoons of the cordial mixed together and then popped into a food container for a few hours. Then stirred through and popped back into the fridge for a few hours and so on til you get a grainy texture. A perfect light dessert for tomorrow.
There are more recipes on the Belvoir website – I rather like the Buttermilk Pannacotta with Raspberries and Rose so will be having a go at that one soon.