Homemade Elderflower Cordial/Hyldeblomstsaft

Makes 2 litres

Ingredients:

1. 15 big heads of elderflower blossom
2. 1 kg sugar
3. 500ml water
4. 1.5 large organic lemons in sliced
5. 1.5 TBS citric acid (50g) (optional) ("Citronsyre" in Danish)

Directions:

1. Pick flowers away from traffic pollution. Remove stems, and shake away any insects. Don't rinse them, as it takes away the flavor from the flowers.

2. Boil water and when the water boils, add in sugar and stir until the sugar are dissolved.

3. Add in lemons, citric acid and elderflowers.

4. Lower fire (no. 2.5 on my stove) while stirring to make sure that elderflowers are fully submerged (less than a minute to do this) and you can switch off the fire immediately already.

5. Let cool on the kitchen counter for 12 hours. If you wish for a stronger flavor and color, continue to let it steep in the fridge for 1-2 days.

6. Use a sieve over a large bowl and strain the flower liquid.

7. To remove any last residue, fill them into bottles using a funnel lined with a filter cloth. 

8. The cordial is ready for use - dilute with water or fizzy water. You can add ice-cubes and lemon slices as desired.

Video Demonstration:

Storage:

1. Store bottles in the fridge. It can last for 30-40 days.

2. You can also freeze it down in the freezer in ice-cube trays or containers.

Uses:

1. Also delicious in vinaigrette - mix with wine vinegar, a touch of mustard, salt, pepper and a light olive oil, and pour over a salad of courgette, lettuce and broad beans.

2. You can also freeze them as homemade Popsicle for the children without diluting them.

References:

http://www.valdemarsro.dk/hyldeblomstsaft/

https://www.dr.dk/mad/opskrift/hjemmelavet-hyldeblomstsaft

https://www.dk-kogebogen.dk/opskrifter/visopskrift.php?id=4574

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dMIfx4MuHOQ

https://www.foodtv.dk/video/1_tcioxvhx/hyldeblomstsaft-frisk-og-laeskende-sommerdrik

https://lonelandmand.wordpress.com/2010/06/29/hyldeblomstsaft-opskrift/

http://www.kvalimad.dk/page/hyldeblomst-saft-hyldeblomst-drik-hyldeblomstsaft/uuid/df7419a1-4f7c-11e6-843e-f1226953a0e3

http://www.redonline.co.uk/food/recipes/elderflower-cordial?img=1

Additional Information:

The elderflower trees are all over Denmark, and they bloom during late June and early July, ready to be plucked and made into elderflower cordial. This is one of the Danish childhood's activities that Danish kids grow up doing and experiencing.  

J learned how to make elderflower cordial at his scouts and requested me to make this with him. He considered it a Science experiment :-) He brought me to the places where we can pluck elderflowers. First we found them in Virum along Lovgardsvej. Then we found a elderflower tree near Sorgenfri Church. We also found elderflower trees in Slotsparken. And finally on the way home, we found two other elderflower trees along the way home away from the traffic, near the cycling lanes "down the river valley" in Lyngby.

So we have been plucking elderflowers after I picked him up from the after-school care for the past two days. Daddy FECS came along yesterday at Slotsparken. It was fortunate that he was there, as the trees were too high for J and I to reach, so Daddy FECS could help us.

But being a Singapore-born city girl, this was the first time I dared venture into making elderflower cordial with our Little FECS after being in Denmark for 17 years, and after much pestering from him though!!!

After trying, I realized that it is actually quite easy. 

J was very excited when we made this together for the first time. As we had so much elderflowers, I made a second batch last evening, but then, the novelty was gone :-( J wasn't too enthusiastic to help me much :-( This is my boy!!!

We gave a bottle to a friend, who was happy to receive it :-)

J taught his clueless concrete-jungle-born Singaporean mom how to spot an elderflower tree, which he learned from his scouting.

An elderflower tree in Slotsparken

 We spotted a elderflower tree that is not polluted by the traffic on the way home from school :-)

Elderflowers blossom close-up.

 27 June 2017 8(Y3M23D): J plucking an elderflower head.

1. First, bring to boil 1 litre of water.

 2. Add 2 kg of sugar i.e. 2 packets

 3. Wait for it to boil to just below boiling point and until all the sugar dissolves.

4. In the meantime, cut the stems off the elderflower heads and shake off any insects. 

Do not wash and rinse them, as it will take away the scent and flavor. You can't avoid some tiny insects remaining, but they will all die in the boiling water and syrup solution.

5. Slice 3 large organic lemons.

 6. Add lemons into the pot. Reduce heat. If you wish to have a longer lifespan for your elderflower cordial, add 3 tablespoons of the citric acid ("citronsyre" in Danish) now. If not, it can keep for 30 days in the fridge.

27 June 2017 (8Y3M23D)
7. Add in 30 stalks of elderflowers, making sure that they are fully submerged.

 8. Cover, off heat and let it cool for 12 hours on the kitchen top.

9. Here is how it looks like inside. Thereafer, if you wish to have a stronger flavor, continue to let it steep in the fridge for 1-2 days.

10. This is how it looks like after being cooled down overnight. 

11. Use a sieve to strain the elderflower cordial.

12. To remove any last residue, I fill them into bottles using a funnel lined with a filter cloth. 

They are ready to be consumed :-) Simple add a small part of elderflower cordial and dilute it with a glass of water to drink. 

You can also freeze it up undiluted to make elderflower popsicle :-) Our kids enjoy it very much. I normally mix 1/2 elderflower cordial and 1/2 water to make the popsicle though so that it is not too sweet, but it is still sweet enough.

You can add elderflower as dressing to your salad too :-)

Come autumn, you can pick wild elderberries to make elderberry cordial. Here is a wonderful post and recipe I have found:

https://suzanneaskham.com/2013/09/15/recipe-elderberry-cordial

Updates 13 June 2023 (CF 7Y)

Oven-Baked Cream Potatoes (Flødekartofler)

Serves 4

Ingredients:

1. 1kg potatoes peeled and sliced thin
2. 2 onions sliced long

3. 4 garlic pressed
4. 500ml cream (piskefløde) or for a lower fat version: 250ml cream (piskefløde) + 100ml fresh milk

5. 1 egg

6. 50 - 100g parmesan cheese

7. A pinch of nutmeg grated (optional)
8. Salt & pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Pre-heat oven to 200 degree celsius.

2. In a bowl, add cream, milk, minced garlic, egg, parmesan cheese, salt and pepper and mix well.
3. Add potatoes, onion and cream mixture in an oven-proof dish and mix well.
4. Bake for an hour or until potatoes are cooked and the surface look golden brown.

Additional Information:

J requested for this Danish dish and I made it for the first time today. It tasted like the good old cream potatoes :-) Sorry no picture to show :-( With an impatient baby on the side, we were too distracted and hungry to take a picture. I adapted from the recipe here.

References:

https://madensverden.dk/floedekartofler/
http://www.louisesmadblog.dk/floedekartofler/

https://www.madformadelskere.dk/floedekartofler-med-parmesan/

Homemade Fruit Popsicles

Makes 4 popsicles

Ingredients:

1. Some cut fruits such as
- 2 strawberries sliced in half

- 8 blueberries

- 4 raspberries

- 4 pieces of bite size pineapple

- 4 pieces of bite size kiwi

- 4 pieces of bite size orange

2. 2 apples for juicing

Directions:

1. Cut some fruits into bite size (i.e. strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, green grapes. kiwi, red grapes, orange, pineapple, mango, peach, etc.)

2. Juice 2 apples in a juicer.

3. Place cut fruits into the popsicle molds.

4. Pour in apple juice just enough to cover the fruits.

5. Insert the popsicle sticks and freeze overnight or until it turned into popsicle, approx. 6 hours.

Additional Information:

Baby FECS is taking her nap. It is a public holiday today. Our Little FECS asked to do an activity. I prepared this activity the night before. I adapted the recipe from here http://www.marthastewart.com/357265/fruit-salad-ice-pops

Instead of using store-bought fruit juice, I prefer to use homemade apple juice. If you prefer it to be sweeter, you can add honey to the apple juice to sweeten it. If I don't have the time to make my own apple juice, I will just use honey water, as that will still be healthier than store-bought juice

To make it look good, think of using colorful fruits. I used pine apple here, but if you don't have the time to cut the whole pineapple, you can use fruit that require minimum cutting such as green grapes, blueberries, raspberries and peach.

You can also make this for birthdays :-)

References:

http://www.marthastewart.com/357265/fruit-salad-ice-pops

Flower Fruit Sticks

Idea credit: http://www.lindsayannbakes.com/2011/05/flower-fruit-pops.html

Ingredients:

1. Watermelon

2. Cantaloupe melon

3. Green grapes

4. food sticks

5. Cookie cutters

Directions:

1. Cut out flower shape from cantaloupe and watermelon.

2. Use a round cookie cutter to make a hole in the middle of the flower.

3. Swap the round shape around and place them into each flower.

4. Skewer through the green grapes as leaves for the flower.

5. Skewer through the flower 

6. Here you go, fruit flower sticks :-)

Here are the steps in pictures:

 I ran out of cataloupe and used dark purple grapes instead for the middle part of the flower.

Let Your Baby "Paint" the Wall

Age: From 1 year old

Materials:

1. 1 paint brush

2. 1 jar of water

Directions:

Let your baby/toddler paint the wall with water and a brush, or simply splashing the water and inspecting the paint brush.

25 May 2017 (1Y10D)

J Summary (8Y2M19D): Sewing

One thing I dread doing is sewing. Whenever our son asked me to sew something for him, I will stress over it. It is because no matter how I try, my workmanship is just so rough and not up to standard, and I couldn't avoid pricking myself. With almost all other things, I could improve and get better, but with sewing, I seem so hopelessly bad at it. But I will still do it, because he equates Mommy's love with it, and because I love our son, and hope that he doesn't mind the poor workmanship. Mommy has tried her level best. The left scout label was just sewn by me. It took me quite some time - sewn, undo, sew, undo and sewn again. After a few re-tries and some sore fingers, this is as best as it looks. Don't ask me how long it took me. I look forward to the day that he can sew on labels on his own... most likely he will do it better than me. He came home and was elated to see that this label was sewn on his scout uniform. At 8 years old, he didn't notice the bad workmanship, whew :-) It is so nice to do your best for someone and to be totally appreciated for it :-)

Montessori Activity: Inserting Ice-Cream Sticks

Age: From 1 year old

Objective: To train fine motor skills in a fun way

Materials:

1. Piggybank with opening at the top

2. 5-10 ice-cream sticks

3. 1 tray (optional)

Directions:

1. Demonstrate to your child how to do it.

2. Invite your child to try

Additional Information:

Don't be discouraged if your child is not interested or could not do it. Each child develops differently. Our Little FECS only did this activity at 2 years old, while our Baby FECS is doing it at 1 year old.

Video Demonstration:

Here is a video demonstration by our Baby FECS

21 May 2017 (1Y6D)

8 July 2017 (1Y1M22D)

C's Lunchbox - Rainbow Fruit Stick

From left: Purple grape, dark purple grape, blueberries, green grape, galia melon, pineapple, cantalope, water melon, raspberry, strawberry

Clockwise from left: bread with peanut butter, frozen peas, frozen sweet corns, watermelon, cucumber, gojiberries

C's Lunchbox - Flower

 Danish rye bread spread with cauliflower puree (white), carrot puree (orange), broccoli puree (green) and parsley

  Clockwise from left: Sweet corn & peas, carrot & cheese, sweet corn & peas, kiwi, pear without skin, blueberries and strawberries

All packed :-)

C's Lunchbox - Letter H

The Letter H Danish rye bread open sandwich spread with broccoli puree (green), carrot puree (orange), salmon puree (light orange), chicken puree (beige) garnished with cress (karse) and sprinkled with olive oil.

  Clockwise from left: Boiled broccoli & boiled champignon mushrooms, shredded carrot & de-skinned cucumber, sweet corn & peas, apple without skin, wholewheat spaghetti with olive oil and goji berries

All packed :-)

C's Lunch Box - Letter C

The Letter C for Chastine Danish rye bread open sandwich spread with broccoli puree (green), red pepper fruit puree (red), sweet potato puree (orange), sweet corn puree (yellow), cauliflower puree (white), chicken puree (beige) garnished with cress (karse) and sprinkled with olive oil.

 Clockwise from left: Boiled broccoli & boiled champignon mushrooms, shredded carrot & de-skinned cucumber, wholewheat spaghetti with olive oil, sweet corn & peas, blueberries and strawberries

All packed :-)

C's Lunch Box - Girl

 Rye bread spread with broccoli puree (green), chicken puree (beige), wholewheat spaghetti for hair, red pepper fruit puree (red), carrot puree (orange), salmon puree (beige) and black sesame seeds

Clockwise from left: Boiled broccoli & boiled champignon mushrooms, wholewheat spaghetti with olive oil, shredded carrot & de-skinned cucumber, strawberries, blueberries and sweet corn & peas

9 May 2017 (11M24D): Now it is all ready to be packed :-)

C's Lunch Box - Chick and Star

Clockwise from left: Rye bread spread with broccoli puree (green), sweet potato puree (orange), red pepper fruit puree (red), carrot puree (orange), sweet corn puree (yellow), salmon puree (beige) and black sesame seeds, sprinkled with olive oil; hard boiled egg, black sesame seeds, tomato and broccoli, sweet corn and peas; raspberry with raisin; blueberries and pear without skin and goji berries, sunflower seeds and pumpkin seeds

J's Lunch Box - Goldfish

Goldfish open sandwich made of rye bread spread with sweet potato puree (orange), sweet corn puree (yellow), red pepper fruit puree (red), cauliflower puree (white), salmon puree (beige) sprinkled with olive oil.

When J saw me making bento lunch box for C, he requested that I made a goldfish for him. But he refused to eat it and took it back from school untouched :-(

C's Lunch Box - Rainbow

Rainbow rye bread open sandwich spread with pea puree (bright green), red pepper fruit puree (red), sweet potato puree (orange), salmon puree (beige), sweet corn puree (yellow),cauliflower puree (white), carrot flower and cheese circle, sprinkled with olive oil.

 Clockwise: Carrot, peas, sweet corns, goji berries, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, blueberries, raspberry with raisin and orange.

All wrapped up :-)

C didn't eat much of the rye bread today, but finished all others except carrots.

C Summary (11M19D): Empty High Chair

I came home, stared at the empty high chair and felt sad. I thought I will look forward to my freedom - some time to myself before I started work, and relish the chance to finally get to go through my to-do list, but I miss Baby FECS so much. She had spent the past 11.5 months everyday with me, sometimes driving me mad. But now that she has started nursery, I am missing her. still it's healthy for her not to be with Mommy all the time. It's good she is walking towards independence. That's life. I will soon get used to it and start enjoying my freedom.

C's Lunch Box - Teddy Bear

 Teddy Bear open sandwich made of rye bread spread with pea puree (bright green), broccoli puree (green), carrot puree (orange), sweet corn puree (yellow), red pepper fruit puree (red), chicken puree (white), salmon puree (beige hidden below broccoli puree) and black sesame seeds, sprinkled with olive oil.

 Clockwise: Shredded carrot, peas, sweet corns, goji berries, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, blueberries, raspberry with raisin and apple without skin.

All wrapped up together :-)

C ate all the rye bread today, making mommy very happy :-)