Dandelion cordial

UPDATE MAY 2021:

Spring 2020 is here and I decided to re-do this recipe and see if I could get more flavour using more flowers. 

This year I was early in picking dandelions and the rain was so intense that there were more dandelions than last year. I managed to pick a hell of a lot more! My 1h foraging trip yielded 360g dandelion flowers which, after removing the stalks and the green sepals, left 200g petals.

I used 1 full cup of dandelion petals per litre of water this time. 1 cup = 50g.

The taste was slightly stronger but only marginal. I wasn't happy with it so I decided to add lemon peel to one pan and tangerine peel to another to see if that made it better. 

The tangerine peel was a total waste and it only made it taste worst. I poured it down the drain.

The lemon peel did work though. The lemony taste makes it tastier and less bland.

I would therefore recommend to add lemon peel with the dandelion petals.

Adjusted ingredients:

• 1 cup dandelion petals (50g) 
• peel of 1 lemon
• 1 litre water
• 750g sugar

🔄🔄🔄

Foraging diaries # 1: Dandelions.

The foraging season has started. Dandelions (Taraxacum officinale) were my first pick this year.

Dandelion beer is a popular recipe but I prefer cordials so I decided to do a dandelion cordial instead.

Cordials are concentrated fruit syrups that can be diluted with water, but I find syrups already very sweet and also dilute them with plenty of water. So for the benefit of my cordial recipe, I have done Darina Allen's basic syrup recipe, added dandelions and called it dandelion cordial.

I may try 1 cup of dandelion petals next time just to see if I can get a bit more flavour from it!

Serves: 950ml.

Ingredients:

• ¾ cups dandelion petals (20g) - I forgot to count how many flowers I picked, around 35-40?
• 1 litre water
• 750g sugar

Method:

1. Prepare the dandelions by removing the stalk and the green sepals around the floweheads. These are bitter so you don't want them going into the cordial. The quantity above was after these have been removed. It takes time and involves a lot of nail work.
   
   
   
   
2. Wash briefly the petals.
3. Simmer the petals in the water for 10 min and then let it cool overnight. Cover the pan with a cloth.
   
4. The next day, sieve the petals and discard them.
5. Add sugar to the liquid and bring to the boil. Boil for 2 min then leave it to cool.
   
6. Store in the fridge, where it will keep for months.
   

I've had it with a shot of rum and a squeeze of lemon juice. Very tasty!