Bake Off’s Peter Sawkins shows there’s so much more to elderflower than cordial

May has arrived, and, while it may not quite feel like it yet, summer is on its way and elderflower is coming into season. We’re lucky in the UK to have a great deal of elderflower so easily at our finger tips, and as the weather hopefully improves it is also an excellent place to start foraging.

But while the season may be upon us, the question is, what uses are there for the tasty flower? Great British Bake Off winner, Peter Sawkins has now joined forces with bottlegreen and provided the Independent with two baking recipes for you to try at home, showing there’s far more to this plant than a delicious drink.

Below we have a lemon and elderflower scones recipe, with the delicate balance of flavours running through all elements from the scone itself, through to the curd and cream. And for those who are hosting parties and barbecues this spring, Peter has also tapped into the trend of drinkable desserts with his modern twist on a classic, creating a lemon and elderflower meringue pie float.

These recipes are a great way to appreciate the season and get ready for summer.

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Ingredients

Scones:

200g self-raising flour (switch for gluten-free self-raising flour plus ½ tsp xanthan gum)

2 tbsp caster sugar

1 tsp baking powder (ensure gluten-free if making gf)

½ tsp Salt

35g butter

1 large egg

4 tbsp bottlegreen elderflower cordial

2 tbsp milk

Zest of 1 lemon (from curd)

1 additional egg yolk (for egg wash)

Elderflower and Lemon Curd:

4 tbsp lemon juice (about 2 large lemons)

2 tbsp bottlegreen elderflower cordial

Zest of 1 lemon

80g caster sugar

4 large egg yolks

70g unsalted butter, cubed

Elderflower Cream:

100ml double cream

10g icing sugar

1 tbsp elderflower Cordial

Method

Preheat the oven to 200ºC fan.

Make the scones:

1. Mix the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt in a mixing bowl. Rub the butter in using your fingertips until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs.

2. Whisk the cordial and milk with the egg. Add this to the dry ingredients along with the lemon zest and cut through with a table knife. Once it begins to clump together, get your hands in and gently work it together into a soft ball of dough.

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3. Generously flour your work surface and turn the dough out onto it. Use a rolling pin or your palms to flatten the dough out to the height of 3 – 3.5cm. Use a 6cm round cutter to cut out the scones. Transfer them to a baking paper lined baking tray.

4. Brush the tops of the scones with the additional egg yolk. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until well risen and golden.

Make the elderflower and lemon curd:

1. Heat the juice, cordial and zest in a non-stick pan to a simmer.

2. Whisk the sugar with the egg yolks. Slowly pour in the hot juice whilst whisking.

3. Return this mixture to the pan and constantly stir over low heat until thickened, up to 5-10 minutes, making sure it doesn't boil. You can also check the temperature to see if it is ready; it should register 75ºC – 82ºC.

4. Take the curd off the heat, allow to cool for a couple of minutes, then whisk in the butter a couple of cubes at a time whilst still warm. Cover and chill in the fridge.

Make the elderflower cream:

Whisk together the double cream, icing sugar and cordial until soft peaks.

Assemble:

Split the scones and fill with a generous serving of the cooled curd and elderflower cream.

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Ingredients

Makes: 4 servings

Candied Lemon Peel:

1 lemon, zest

50g caster sugar (plus additional 10g)

50ml water

Italian Meringue:

1 large egg whites

80g caster sugar

1 tbsp water

Elderflower Lemonade:

4 lemons, juiced

Reserved syrup from lemon peel

120ml bottlegreen elderflower cordial, chilled

500ml tonic or soda water, chilled

4 scoops lemon sorbet

Method

Make the Candied Lemon Peel:

1. Preheat the oven to 100ºC.

2. Use a speed peeler to peel large strips of lemon zest from the lemon.

3. Combine the water and sugar over high heat stirring until the sugar has dissolved. Add in the lemon peel and simmer for about 10 minutes.

4. Drain the lemon peel, reserve the syrup and chill for later.

5. Lay the drained peel on a baking tray and bake in the low oven for about 30-40 minutes to dry out.

6. Remove the peel from the oven and roll in the additional caster sugar.

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Make the Italian Meringue:

1. Stir together the sugar and water over high heat until the sugar has dissolved and it begins to boil. Remove the spoon from the pan and leave boiling over high heat.

2. Meanwhile, whisk the egg whites in a stand mixer or with an electric hand whisk until a cloud like texture.

3. Once the sugar syrup registers 121ºC on a sugar thermometer, remove it from the heat and slowly pour into the egg whites whisking at high speed.

4. Continue whisking until the mixture is cool, firm and glossy. Fill a piping bag with the meringue.

Make the Elderflower Lemonade:

Strain the lemon juice into a jug. Stir through the syrup and cordial.

Assemble:

1. Add one scoop of lemon sorbet into each glass. Fill each glass about ¼ of the way up with the elderflower lemonade. Top off each glass with tonic water.

2. Pipe the Italian meringue over the sorbet and brown with a blow torch. Finally, top the meringue with a piece of the candied lemon peel.