VP's Recipe Book

Today's menu:

Tea Time Treats

• Scones
• Chocolate Cake
• Halifax Building Society Fruit Cake
• Bramble Jam

Glut Buster

• Roasted Tomato Sauce
• Allotment soup
• Hugh Fearnley Whittingstall's Glutney
• Courgette Cake
• Courgette, Tarragon and Lemon Bread
• Courgette Fritters
• Baked Courgette Omlette
• Butternut Squash Risotto

A Stronger Tipple

• Elderflower Champagne
• Elderberry wine

Do you have a favourite recipe you'd like to add? Do tell me about it in the Comments section below...

Scones

Until I left home, we went to my nan and grandad's (dad's parents) for tea every Tuesday. My nan's baking was legendary and she always had her little Bero (brand of baking flour) recipe book to hand. When I bought my house in 1981, it seemed only natural to have my own copy. As you can see they'd been going for a 100 years at the time, so they must have been doing something right.

Traditionally plain scones are served with a cream tea, but my dad always liked a fruit scone with his, so here's both versions. Note the fruit scones are to the definitive R Pete Free Standard - absolutely no mixed peel allowed.

For Plain Scones:

8oz (200g) self-raising flour
0.5 teaspoon (2.5ml) salt
1.5 oz (50g) lard (or margarine if you'd like your scone a little richer)
Milk to make a soft dough

For Fruit Scones:

8oz (200g) self-raising flour
0.5 teaspoon (2.5ml) salt
1.5 oz (50g) margarine
1 oz (25g) sugar
2oz (50g) currants, raisins or sultanas
1 egg beaten with enough milk to make 0.25 pint liquid (1 egg + 75ml milk)

Method:

1. Mix flour and salt, rub in the margarine or lard
2. Stir in the sugar and fruit if making fruit scones
3. Add liquid, reserving a little for brushing the tops
4. Knead lightly on a floured surface and roll out just over 1cm in thickness
5. Cut into rounds using a fluted cutter, re-roll the trimmings and cut more rounds
6. Place on a greased baking tray and brush the tops with the remaining liquid
7. Bake in a hot oven (220 centrigrade, 425 Fahrenheit, Gas mark 7) for about 10 minutes

Makes approximately 10 scones.

Our local garden centre has a 2 for 1 offer on cream teas during August - Yippee!

Measure converter - for ounces, cups, grammes etc.

Chocolate Cake

This cake has a secret ingredient and is absolutely scrummy. Get your friends and family to guess what it is after they've tasted it - mine have always failed, yet it makes sense once you're in the know and can see what it replaces. I've only managed to get as far as icing the cake just once because NAH and I can't wait to eat it! Makes 1 seven inch cake.

Ingredients:

• 10 ounces (oz) self-raising flour, sifted
• 8 oz sugar
• 1.5 teaspoons baking powder
• 7 oz mayonnaise (not the low fat kind)
• 4 tablespoons cocoa
• 8 fluid oz boiling water
• 1 teaspoon vanilla essence

Icing aka Frosting (optional):

• 2 teaspoons instant coffee
• 2 tablespoons cocoa
• 2 tablespoons hot water
• 3 oz soft margarine
• 8 oz icing sugar, sifted

Method:

1. Mix together the flour sugar, baking powder and mayonnaise
2. Dissolve the cocoa in the boiling water
3. Gently stir this into the mixture with the vanilla essence until thoroughly blended
4. Turn into a greased and lined 7 inch deep, round cake tin
5. Bake at Mark 4 (180 centrigrade/350 fahrenheit - for fan-assisted ovens the centrigrade equivalent is 160) for 1 to one and a quarter hours.
6. Cool in the tin before removing

For the icing:

1. Dissolve the coffee and cocoa in the hot water
2. Cream together the margarine and icing sugar and beat in the cocoa liquid
3. Spread over the top of the cake

Enjoy!

Measure converter - for ounces, cups, grammes etc.

Halifax Building Society Fruit Cake

I'm now the proud possessor of my mother-in-law's (MIL) cookery book. It wasn't until I opened it that I realised it contains recipes from three generations of NAH's family. Open it and the smell instantly transports me back to the house in Darlington that I've known for 25 years. Sadly we won't be able to go there much longer; NAH is in the process of selling the house as my MIL is now in a care home. However, this recipe takes me back to much happier times and is a family institution. It was taken from the Halifax Building Society Homeowner magazine number 160, Autumn 1982.

Ingredients:

• 100 grammes (4 ounces) margarine
• 1 cup sugar (4 ounces)
• 2 cups mixed dried fruit (8 ounces)
• 1 cup milk
• 1 heaped teaspoon black treacle
• 225 grammes (8 ounces) plain flour
• 1 level teaspoon mixed spice
• 0.5 level teaspoon baking powder
• 0.5 level teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
• 1 egg, beaten

MIL's notes also has salt (a pinch if wanted) and additional ginger - I suggest 1 level teaspoon for starters, more if you like your cake a bit spicier.

Method:

1. Melt the margarine, sugar and treacle in the milk in a large pan
2. Add the dried fruit and bring the mixture to the boil
3. Simmer for 2-3 minutes and remove from the heat and allow to go almost cold
4. Turn into a greased and lined oblong 2lb cake tin
5. Bake at 325 fahrenheit for three quarters of an hour
6. Cool, turn the cake out of the tin and serve sliced

Unbelievably NAH found one of these in the freezer in Darlington a few weeks ago dated 2001 - we've just enjoyed it immensely. It was probably one of the last cakes my MIL made.

Measure converter - for ounces, cups, grammes etc.

Bramble Jam

Threadspider gave me this recipe for Bramble Jam (aka Jelly!) and we had a lot of fun recently at her place setting up the above photograph of her bounty from last year. It's sieved, so there's no pips to stick in your teeth. It's a great recipe for using some of your hedgerow harvest combined with any windfall apples you may have from your trees.

To make 3- 5 jars.

Ingredients

• 1.3kg/3lb blackberries, washed and bits of stalk etc. removed.
• 2 large cooking apples, washed and diced
• 450ml/¾ pint water
• 1 lemon, juice only
• Preserving or granulated sugar
• 2-3 tbsp crème de cassis or other blackberry or blackcurrant liqueur.(Optional but very very nice!)

You will also need:

• Muslin, tea towel or jelly bag
• Sterilized jam jars and jam pot covers

Method

1. Prepare a jelly bag or tea towel or muslin by boiling in water for 2-3 minutes. Wring well and leave to cool. Arrange the jelly bag on a stand or up-turned stool or chair with a large bowl beneath, ready for the fruit juice to drip through.
2. Place the blackberries, apple, water and lemon juice in a preserving or large, heavy based saucepan.
3. Bring to the boil, then simmer over a low heat for 20-25 minutes or until the fruit is completely soft. I have the muslin simmering in a pan in the background at the same time.
4. Tip the soft fruit and juice into the jelly bag and leave to drip for 8 hours or until all the juice has been released.
5. Prepare the jam jars by washing in hot soapy water and leaving to dry and warm in a cool oven - 130C/250F/Gas ½ for 10-15 minutes.
6. Measure the juice. For every 600ml/1 pint weigh 450g/1lb sugar. Put the juice and sugar back into the clean preserving pan, heat over a low heat until all the sugar has dissolved, add the liqueur, if using. Bring to the boil and simmer for 10-15 minutes or until setting point is reached. Setting point is 112 degrees on a sugar thermometer, if you have one.
7. Skim away any scum from the top of the jelly and fill the jam jars to the brim. Cover, seal and label. Store in a cool, dark place until required.

VP's notes:

1. If you don't have a sugar thermometer you can test the setting point in step 6 as follows: Put 2 plates in the refridgerator to cool. After 10-15 minutes, take one of the plates out of the fridge and spoon a little of the jam onto it. If you can wrinkle the surface with a finger after a couple of minutes, setting point has been reached. If not, return the plate to the fridge (in case you have to use it again) and simmer the jam for a few more minutes. Use the second plate for the next testing. And so on until setting point's been reached.

Measure converter - for ounces, cups, grammes etc.

Roasted Tomato Sauce

The first combined food growing and cookbook I ever bought was Fork to Fork by Monty and Sarah Don. It was also the first book I bought on Amazon second-hand as it was out of print at the time. I believe an updated version is now available. The book brightened up my train commute to Bristol for quite a while during a bleak and dismal November when I couldn't get to grips with my new allotment. I'd just acquired it (in October 2003) and was dreaming about all the wonderful fresh, seasonal food I would soon be growing. This book fueled my dreams. That first allotment summer I grew an abundance of tomatoes that stayed for weeks after I'd actually composted the plants. Once again I turned to Fork to Fork for inspiration and found this marvellously rich tomato sauce. I use it as a basis for soups and pasta sauce (it can also be used for pizzas), the latter often contains the ever present courgette too!

Ingredients:

• 5lb (2.25kg) fresh tomatoes (single variety, or mixed according to what's in abundance at the time)
• 4 cloves garlic, sliced (I often use more, especially if there's been a good crop)
• Sea salt
• Sugar
• Olive oil (I use extra virgin as I love its fruitiness)

Method:

1. Cut the tomatoes in half and place cut side down in a large roasting tin
2. Sprinkle with the garlic, sea salt and a little sugar; drizzle with olive oil
3. Roast in a pre-heated hot oven (gas Mark 8, 230 degrees centigrade, 450 degrees fahrenheit) for 40-60 minutes. Don't worry if the tomatoes start to bubble - this is the water evaporating out of them, which means a much more concentrated flavour
4. To make the sauce, scrape off every last bit of tomato into a food processor and process until smooth
5. The sauce will keep for up to a week in the fridge with a little olive oil floated on top, or it can be put in small containers for the freezer (about a quarter of the sauce to 1 container)

Measure converter - for ounces, cups, grammes etc.

Allotment Soup/ Courgette & Brie Soup

Most weekends NAH and I have 'Allotment Soup' ('Assortment Soup' for those of you who don't have an allotment) for lunch. This tends to be whatever is in abundance at the time (seasonal and therefore cheapest if you're buying), so naturally at this time of the year courgettes (zucchini) form a major component. The onions, garlic, and herbs fresh from the garden are constants. I use potato if the soup will need a thickener (for example you won't need potato if you're making a parsnip centric version) and the courgette component will be whatever glut vegetables you have to hand - 1 vegetable or a mixture, it's up to you. Note I don't use salt in my cooking, so you may want to add your own to taste. This quantity will generously serve 4-6.

Ingredients

• 2lb courgettes or other vegetables of your choice
• 1 large onion
• 8oz potato (washed, but not peeled)
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 bunch fresh herbs - type and amount to your taste. I've used sage this time - mixed herbs, thyme, oregano or rosemary also work well, or powdered coriander (cilantro) seed
• 4 bay leaves
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 1 tablespoon Extra virgin olive oil
• 2 pints vegetable stock (either home made or a stock cube made up to the amount needed with hot water)

Method

• Peel and chop the onion into rough slices
• Pour the olive oil into a large pan and set on the stove
• Add the onion and set the pan to a medium heat
• Peel and chop the garlic and add to the pan
• Gently soften the onion and garlic until they are transparent
• Add the vegetable stock and freshly ground pepper to taste
• Roughly chop the remaining vegetables and add to the pan
• Destalk the herbs and add to the pan along with the bay leaves
• Bring the pan to a rolling boil, then cover and turn down the heat and simmer for 25 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender. Taste and adjust seasoning about half way through
• Allow to cool, then remove the bay leaves with a spoon (you can leave them in if liked - this makes for a spicier version, but you may get the odd fragment of stalk)
• Process the soup using a blender until smooth
• Reheat and serve with fresh crusty bread

Variation: For courgette gluts, my neighbour makes a delicious courgette and brie soup taken from the New Covent Garden's soup recipe book. And here's the recipe - I've only been able to find a metric version, so you may need to use the measure converter below.

Courgette and Brie Soup (serves 6)

Ingredients

450g courgettes - chopped
350g potatoes - peeled and chopped (I leave the skins on as I prefer them that way)
225g Brie - ripe with rind removed
1 large onion - chopped
1.2 litres vegetable stock (home made, or 1 stock cube made up to the required amount)
Seasoning to taste

Method

• Put all the vegetables in a large pan, add the stock and seasoning to taste
• Bring to the boil, then simmer for 15 minutes or until the vegetables are tender
• Cool slightly, then process the soup using a blender until smooth
• Add the brie, bring back to near boiling point, stirring constantly so the brie is combined with the liquid
• Taste and adjust seasoning if needed

Measure converter - for ounces, cups, grammes etc.

Hugh Fearnley Whittingstall's Glutney

Photo courtesy of: Easygardener

I first came across this recipe in Kitchen Garden magazine a couple of years ago in their version of 'glut buster' recipes. Anyone who can call their chutney 'glutney' has my vote - it turns out to be a great pickle too. Here's the recipe in Hugh's own words.

This lovely pickle is a fantastic way to use various summer veg gluts, and overgrown courgettes are one of my favourites. You can alter the recipe according to what you have, and chop and change the spices to suit your taste, too. Makes about 10 jars.

Ingredients:

• 1kg courgettes, unpeeled if small, peeled if huge, cut into 1cm dice (or use pumpkin later in the season)
• 1kg red or green tomatoes, scalded, skinned and roughly chopped (or 1kg plums, stoned and chopped)
• 1kg cooking or eating apples, peeled and diced
• 500g onions, peeled and diced
• 500g sultanas or raisins
• 500g light brown sugar
• 750ml white-wine or cider vinegar, made up to 1 litre with water
• 1-3 tsp dried chilli flakes
• 1 tsp salt

Measure converter - for ounces, cups, grammes etc.

For the spice bag:

• 1 thumb-sized nugget of fresh or dried ginger, roughly chopped
• 12 cloves
• 12 black peppercorns
• 1 (generous) tsp coriander seeds
• A few blades of mace

Method:

1. Put the vegetables and fruit in a large, heavy-based pan with the sultanas or raisins, sugar, vinegar and water, chilli flakes and salt.
2. Make up the spice bag by tying all the spices in a square of muslin or cotton. Add the spice bag to the pan, pushing it into the middle.
3. Heat the mixture gently, stirring occasionally to dissolve the sugar, and bring slowly to the boil.
4. Simmer for 2-3 hours, uncovered, stirring regularly to ensure it does not burn on the bottom of the pan.
5. The chutney is ready when it is rich, thick and reduced, and parts to reveal the base of the pan when a wooden spoon is dragged through it. If it starts to dry out before this stage is reached, add a little boiling water.
6. Pot up the chutney while still warm (but not boiling hot) in sterilised jars with plastic-coated screw-top lids (essential to stop the vinegar interacting with the metal).

Leave to mature for at least two weeks - ideally two months - before serving.

Courgette Cake

The office at my last job had a very good coffee bar with an afternoon coffee and cake offer that was extremely bad for the waistline, but such a bargain it was hard to resist - Americano and a large slice of cake for 99p. A different cake was baked on the premises each day and their version of courgette cake was one of my favourites.

Ingredients:

For the cake:
250g butter, broken up into pieces (at room temperature)
450g (1 cup) caster sugar or brown sugar
4 eggs
350g (3 cups) self raising flour
juice and zest of 1 lemon
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp mixed spice
350g (3 cups) courgette (zucchini), grated
50g (1/2 cup) walnuts, roughly chopped
80g (1/2 cup) sultanas (optional)

Lemon Cream Cheese Icing:
125g cream cheese
50g unsalted butter
300g icing sugar
juice and zest of 1/2 lemon

Method:

Courgette Cake:

1. Grease and line 2 x 8inch (20cm) cake tins with baking paper
2. Preheat an oven to 180°C
3. Place the butter and sugar in a bowl and beat until creamy
4. Add the eggs one at a time while mixing until the eggs are well incorporated
5. Sieve the flour with the cinnamon and mixed spice
6. Fold in a 1/3 of the flour, followed by 1/2 of the lemon juice and zest, repeat this using the remaining flour and lemon, so that all the ingredients are well combined
7. Stir in the courgette, walnuts and sultanas (if using) and incorporate well
8. Pour the mixture into the prepared cake tins and place on the centre shelf of the preheated oven
9. Leave the cakes to cook for around 30-40 minutes or until the cake is firm to touch
10. Turn the cakes out on a rack and allow to cool

Lemon Cream Cheese Icing:

1. Beat the cream cheese and butter together until creamy
2. Gradually beat in the icing sugar and lemon juice and zest until you have a smooth creamy icing
3. Spread half the icing over the top of the one cake and sandwich the two cakes together
4. Cover the top of the cake with the remaining icing

Variation: Zest and juice of oranges or limes can be used instead of the lemon

Measure converter - for ounces, cups, grammes etc.

Courgette, Tarragon & Lemon Bread

This recipe is taken from The Bread Book by Sara Lewis and is another cunning way of using up some of that courgette glut. To keep things (relatively) short, I'll just post the bread machine recipe. Do post me a comment if you'd like the hand-made version.

Ingredients

• 150g (5oz, heaping half cup) courgette - grated & patted dry with kitchen paper
• 500g (1lb, 4.5 cups) strong white flour
• 1 lemon, grated rind only
• 1 tablespoon fresh chopped French tarragon (don't bother with Russian unless you really don't like the aniseed flavour)
• 1 teaspoon caster sugar
• 2 teaspoons salt
• freshly ground black pepper
• 1.5 teaspoons fast-action dried yeast
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 200ml (7 fl oz, scant 1 cup water)

Method

1. Assemble ingredients.
2. Lift the tin out of the breadmaker, fit the kneader blade and then add the ingredients in the order advised by your breadmachine's manufacturer
3. Insert the tin into the breadmachine and shut the lid. Select basic large (750g/1.5lb) white bake and select the preferred crust setting if your machine has this option. (I used the dark crust setting for the loaf you see in the photo) Press start.
4. At the end of the programme, lift the tin out of the machine with oven gloves and turn the bread out onto a wire rack to cool. Loosen the bread with a plastic spatula if it's reluctant to leave the tin.
5. If you don't have a crust setting option and you find the loaf is rather pale on top, brush a little butter over the top and brown under the grill.

Makes 1 large loaf. Delicious with tuna or soup, such as my Allotment Soup

Variations
I find it very hard to keep to a recipe, so here are some variations I've tried:

• Substitute the same amount of peeled butternut squash for the courgette. This is a good way of using those teeny tiny squashes we get from time to time
• Fennel foliage (bulb or herb) instead of tarragon for a stronger aniseed taste
• Use 30-40ml juice from your grated lemon and make up to the 200ml liquid needed with water. Tip - microwave the lemon for 10 seconds and you'll extract the juice much more easily
• Substitute strong wholemeal flour for the white flour to make an even healthier bread. However, you'll lose some of the green speckled effect from the courgette and tarragon. Also, remember to change the baking option to brown bread!

Courgette Fritters

These are delicious and remind me so much of holidays in Greece where NAH and I would order a large plateful as a starter at a lovely restaurant looking over the sea at Finnikounda. Sometimes as a variation, we'd order a plateful of aubergine fritters instead.

Fritter Ingredients:

• 2 lb courgettes (or aubergine or a mixture of the two)
• 1 medium egg, beaten
• 6 tbsps plain flour
• Oil for frying
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Sauce Ingredients (optional)

• 1 lb tomatoes skinned & chopped
• 2 tbsps olive oil
• 1 green chilli, deseeded and chopped (optional - can use chopped basil/oregano instead if preferred)
• 1 clove garlic, chopped
  ½ onion, chopped

Method

1. Cut courgettes into thin slices (round, lengthways, or oval - it's up to you)
2. Salt slices and put in colander to drain for half an hour
3. Rinse and pat dry
4. Put all sauce ingredients in a liquidiser and process to a puree
5. Put puree into a small pan and let it bubble gently on a low heat while the fritters are made
6. Pour the beaten egg onto a flat plate. Spread flour onto another plate, seasoning with salt and pepper.
7. Heat oil in a frying pan. When hot dip the vegetables first in the egg, then the flour. The idea is to have a light dusting of flour on the courgette. Fry a few at a time until crisp. Drain on kitchen paper.

Serve immediately with the sauce served seperately. Serves 4.

Variation: Finely grated Parmesan cheese can be added into the flour (adjusting the amount of flour used accordingly) or used instead.

Measure converter - for ounces, cups, grammes etc.

Baked Courgette Omlette

Here's a simple, oven based recipe from Kitchen Garden magazine that can be baked at the same time as your other cooking to make more efficient use of oven space. Useful now that our utility bills are going up so much! It makes a simple lunch or supper dish, served with your freshest salad leaves and crusty bread.

Ingredients

• 2 courgettes, grated
• 3 eggs, beaten
• 4 oz (125g) Cheddar cheese, grated
• Freshly chopped herbs to taste - oregano, thyme, marjoram or a mixture
• Salt and freshly ground pepper

Method:

1. Mix all ingredients together in a basin
2. Pour into a greased, oven-proof dish
3. Bake in a moderate oven until set and golden brown

Serves 2.

Butternut Squash Risotto

My brother-in-law and family are vegetarians and were coming down for the weekend a couple of years ago. I had a major glut of squash and needed some inspiration for an evening meal. A quick Google search and voila! I found the following recipe on the BBC website. It went down very well with my discerning visitors...

Ingredients:

• 1 large butternut squash
• 2 garlic cloves, peeled
• 2 tbsp olive oil, plus extra for drizzling
• About 15 sage leaves, chopped
• Flaked sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 3 large knobs of butter
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 400g/14oz arborio or other Italian risotto rice
• 2 glasses white wine
• 1 litre/1¾ pint vegetable stock (or chicken stock if your guests aren't vegetarian!)
• Good handful of freshly grated parmesan cheese, plus extra to serve
• 75g/3oz pinenuts, to serve

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 200C/400F/Gas 6
2. 2. Cut the butternut squash into 6-8 wedges, remove the seeds and place in a roasting tray
3. Pound or chop the garlic and add a generous glug of olive oil, half the sage leaves, sea salt and pepper. Tip into the tray and rub over the butternut squash with your hands
4. Roast in the oven for 40-50 minutes until softened and becoming golden in colour.
5. Once the squash has cooked, cool slightly, then scrape the soft flesh away from the skin into a bowl. Lightly mash with a fork or potato masher until it is fairly chunky in texture. Scrape any sticky juices left in the roasting tray into the bowl and keep warm while making the risotto
6. Heat the olive oil and a good knob of butter in a deep, heavy-based frying pan or saute pan
7. Gently fry the onion until softened
8. Add the rice and stir for about a minute until the grains are coated with the oil and butter
9. Pour in the wine and stir continuously until it has cooked into the rice
10. Add a good ladle of hot stock and the remaining sage and season well with salt and pepper
11. Turn the heat down so the stock is simmering gently. Keep adding ladles of stock as it cooks into the rice, stirring and moving the rice around in the pan
12. After about 15-20 minutes the rice should be soft but still have a bit of bite left in it. The texture of the risotto should be thick and creamy, but not too loose. Add extra stock if necessary. It may seem tedious standing and stirring but the end result will be worth it
13. Remove the pan from the heat and gently stir the roasted butternut squash into the risotto with the parmesan, the remaining butter and seasoning to taste. Add any extra stock if the risotto seems particularly thick. Cover with a lid for a couple of minutes as this will give the risotto an even creamier texture
14. During this time, place the pinenuts in a fairly hot frying pan and toss around until golden. Spoon the risotto into warmed bowls and scatter with the pinenuts and extra parmesan.

Tip: For a smoky non-vegetarian finish to the risotto, fry 6-8 slices of smoked streaky bacon cut into thin strips or 200g/7oz lardons until crispy and scatter over the risotto with the pinenuts.

Serve with garlic bread and salad. Serves 4.

Measure converter - for ounces, cups, grammes etc.

Elderflower Champagne

Picture courtesy of and Copyright: Y. E. W Heuzen

Garden Hopping (Zoe) gave me the recipe for this. I believe she in turn obtained it from the BBC.

Elderflower champagne is a clear, sparkling drink that is mildly alcoholic. It is easy to prepare and only takes two weeks to mature. As the name suggests, one of the primary ingredients are the whiteflowers of the Common Elder tree (Sambucus nigra). These trees are quite common in the UK, and if there aren't any in your garden, they are often found around car parks, squares, schools and other open spaces. Make sure that you get the right tree though! The trees themselves are coarse and shrubby, with large flat heads of creamy white flowers in early summer and clusters of reddish-purple berries in the autumn.

Pre-preparation:

Ingredients

This makes about 10 litres of elderflower champagne:

• 4 large heads of elder flowers - make sure that they are fully open, preferably facing the Sun
• 1kg of sugar
• 2 lemons
• 4 tablespoons of white wine vinegar
• 10 litres of cold water

Measure converter - for ounces, cups, grammes etc.

Equipment/Utensils

• A ten-litre vessel - a large plastic bucket is ideal. Ensure that it's well washed out and preferably sterilised.
• Strong bottles - these need to withstand the pressure of the carbon dioxide gas produced. Two-litre plastic drinks bottles work, but oldscrew-cap glass bottles work better and don't let as much gas escape.
• A large jug - about two litres in capacity.
• A small jug - ideally, this should hold about 750ml and is to act as a bailer.
• A lemon-squeezer
• A funnel
• A potato-peeler
• A tablespoon
• A sieve
• A strainer

Time-scale
Preparation Time: 30 minutes; Standing Time: 24 hours; Maturing Time: two weeks plus

Method

1. Wash the lemons and use the potato-peeler to peel the lemon rind off as thinly as possible.
2. Remove any insects, leaves or other unwanted objects from the elder flowers.
3. Squeeze the lemons and put the juice into the ten-litre vessel alongwith the lemon rind and flowers.
4. Add the sugar and the wine vinegar. Be careful not to crush the flowerheads too much with the sugar.
5. Pour on the water. Put a lid or cover over the top of the vessel and leave to stand for 24 hours.and stir gently every six hours.
6. Sterilise the bottles either using sterilising chemical tablets or boiling water. If you use chemical tablets, rinse the bottles afterwards so that the chemicals don't kill the yeast in the champagne mixture.
7. Take the lid off the vessel and remove any large flower heads or bits of rind.
8. Use the small jug to bail some of the mixture through the sieve and into the large jug.
9. When the large jug becomes full, place the funnel in the top of a bottle.
10. Pour the mixture through the strainer into the funnel.
11. Once all the bottles are full, put the caps (or corks) on firmly and place somewhere not too warm or too cold. A garage shelf is ideal.

After two weeks the champagne is ready for drinking. However, the taste does improve with time and can be left for up to two years. It's probably best to leave it for six months to a year to mature, as this means the full taste will have developed, yet without any fizz escaping. (That's assuming the caps have been done up properly.) Try to make as much as possible during the months of June and early July as this is when the flowers will be at their best. Typically, 20 litres should provide ample supply for a year's worth of drinking fora family of four.

Elderberry Wine

When NAH and I got married, we were given a book on making home-made wine by one of my cousins. Whilst we were looking at all the wedding gifts, my mum spotted the book and told me her brother had started out in business by supplying Boots with fermentation locks. So I just had to have a go at making some wine - beer I leave to NAH. As we'd moved to a very small town in Wiltshire (Corsham), it seemed natural to make use of the bounty of the hedgerows close to where we lived. Elderberries were in abundance that year, so that's the first wine I ever made. This sweet version's been a regular ever since.

And the now well thumbed book my cousin gave me? First Steps in Wine Making by the aptly named C. J. J. Berry

Ingredients:

• 3lb (1.5 kilos) Elderberries
• 3.5lb (1.5 kilos) Sugar
• 1 teaspoon Citric Acid
• 1 gallon (4.5 litres) Water - boiled
• Yeast and nutrient

Method:

1. Strip the berries from the stalks using the prongs of a table fork (it's quicker and less messy that way)
2. Weigh the berries and crush them in a bowl (I use a large, clean bucket instead)
3. Pour on the boiling water and let it cool to about 21 degrees centigrade before adding the yeast and citric acid
4. Leave for 3 days, stirring daily, then pour through a fine sieve onto the sugar (another large, clean bucket)
5. Pour the liquid into a dark glass demijohn (the wine tends to lose its colour if a clear one is used), but do not fill completely until the first vigorous fermentation has subsided. Plug the neck with cotton wool during this time
6. When the fermentation is quieter fill the demijohn to the top of the neck and fit the airlock
7. Leave to ferment in a dark place - an airing cupboard is ideal. Leave until fermentation is complete - it may take up to 6 months
8. Siphon off into clean, dark bottles, cap (or cork) and keep for 6 months at least

Measure converter - for ounces, cups, grammes etc.