June Hedgerow Recipe: Elderflower Cordial

30 - 40 elderflower heads
2 unwaxed lemons, scrubbed and sliced
1 X 50 pack of citric acid (from a chemist)
Up to 1.8kg / 4lb golden caster / granulated sugar
Muslin
3 or 4 empty screw top white wine / rose bottles

First drink the wine - sorry, I lie but screw top wine bottles are ideal to keep this in. Just soak off the labels and sterilise in the dishwasher / wash and drip dry in a warm oven about 1/2 hour before bottling.

Pick the elder flowers when they are in full bloom - ideally on a lovely walk! When you get home gently turn them out onto the work top / draining board to allow any hidden insects to escape. Cut off the stems and pop them into a large bowl. Add the lemon, citric acid and sugar and 1.5 litres / 2 1/2 pints boiling water. You can experiment with adding other flavours such as ginger or mint. Stir to dissolve the sugar then cover - stirring daily. Recipes vary on the steeping time, it varies between one and five days, but each day that you leave it make sure that you stir the mixture.

Rinse your muslin in boiling water then line a colander with the muslin and strain the mixture.

Chill and serve with water / sparkling water or tonic and a slice of lemon.



Special Guest Recipe from Cheryl Pasquier

Fajitas are a great way to get food into fussy eaters. My daughter wolfed down chicken/tomato/onion/mushrooms/red pepper/guacamole, even though individually she turns her nose up at most of those ingredients. I guess it's the fun of being allowed to eat with your fingers and trying to eat it before it falls apart, plus the fact that she couldn't actually see what she was eating !

Also turtle pittas are great. Cut a pitta bread into two unequal halves, stuff with healthy filling of choice, stand them up next to each other on a plate (head and body) and use a tiny dab of cheese spread to stick on raisin eyes!

We look forward to sending Cheryl her free Barefoot Book as thanks! If you have a recipe that you would like to see here follow this link


Roly Poly bread - with the option of pizza too

This is a great way to spend an afternoon - and you feel virtuous at the end of it!

First, follow the instructions for quick bread on the side of a pack of quick yeast. (I tend to use Dover Farm brand, which may not be ideal for all as it is one large pack rather than sachets with a longer shelf life.) Quick or Fast Action yeast is great as it really takes the hassle out of making bread - you throw it in with the rest of the ingredients neat and it only needs to prove once.

A small bowl, a tea strainer and a little flour is a great way to entertain a toddler while you measure out the ingredients. When it comes to the kneading stage, hand a chunk to your assistant, on the understanding that it may need to be 'quaranteened' after it has been flung on the floor, dribbled on, or mixed with cat food. Once kneaded, roll the dough out into a rectangle up to 1cm thick and allow to prove. If you have extra, you can always make pizza for supper - just roll out a circle then add the usual toppings (passata and a little tomato puree make a quick and easy sauce).

Saute a finely chopped onion, add some garlic, then add in whichever vegetables you will get away with (I use spinach, peppers and tomatoes). Once cooked, stir in some cheese, feta and taleggio.

Spread the mixture across the dough, then roll up into a roly poly. Allow another short while to prove (I don't know why, but I do). Brush with a little beaten egg if you have one handy.

Once cooled, slice and admire!

Risotto balls

Have you ever found the fridge empty apart from a slightly sad-looking butternut squash? This can be great emergency food before the next veg box arrives! Make up a batch of risotto adding a finely cubed squash. Set aside risotto for the adults. Make golf ball sized scoops, then squish a little cheese in the centre (mozzarella is ideal). Roll the balls in a little beaten egg, then roll in either bread crumbs or polenta. Very delicately brush with olive oil (I say delicately because a heavy hand can cause the balls to crumble) then cook in a moderate oven until golden. These freeze really well - and are great on their own dipped into sauce, or as a side dish.

July recipe

This is a perfect recipe for a busy Mum or Mum to be. A few minutes of busy chopping, one pan and then half an hour later you've got nourishing, edible food, which is more aimed at Mums than kids. It does make this page quite risotto heavy, but I promise next month we'll have something different.

Fry a chopped onion, then add some chopped/crushed garlic.
Cut off the top of a courgette (lengthwise for normal ones - but if you are lucky and have grown the round Italian ones, lop off the stalk end) then scoop out the flesh.
Add the courgette flesh to the onion mixture and soften.
Chop up some goats cheese and mix with some fresh herbs - mint, chives and oregano work well. Mix in with some of the onion and as much of the courgette flesh as you can easily recover.
Stuff the courgette with the goat's cheese mixture.
Add a little more oil to the onions still in the pan, add a cup of risotto rice and stir well to coat the rice. If you have an open bottle of white wine, slosh in about half a slug and cook off the alcohol. Add about two cups of stock.
Gently lay the stuffed courgettes on the rice and stock and cover with a good lid.
Pop into the oven at 180'c for 20 mins and you should have a delicious low maintenance supper!

Aubergine ideas
There is more to aubergine than moussaka! Okay, little people can view them with suspicion so you may just need to try your luck. They are great roasted whole then mashed up and made into little thick pancakes or turned into a garlicy dip.

I also cube them into 1cm cubes, fry them, then mix with goats cheese and rocket for a great salad.

Halve them lengthwise then griddle them until done. Then layer them up like a sophisticated pizza. My best topping is olives and maybe a few roast baby toms, topped with goats cheese and a little parmesan, and then grilled till golden.

As the months role by I will update this section, particularly with new Seasonal Recipes - and '  archive  ' the old ones.