Description
Freeze dried strawberries, Elderflower, Lemon verbena.Allergens in bold
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There’s nothing like soaking up a sunny summer’s day with a little forage for sweetly scented elderflowers, I love elderflower cordial and it’s always been a summer staple for me with a bowl of strawberry’s from the garden! So I thought why not try and blend these together, with a little citrus lemon verbena for a summer infusion and so midsummer brew was created!
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Elder folklore
Elder has a very rich history in folklore medicinally and spiritually, they were believed to be inhabited by witches who had changed themselves In order to avoid being caught, so because of this, before foraging from an elder tree you must always ask permission from the witch in residence before taking anything from her tree or be doomed to suffer the consequences! Burning elder in the home was also a risky business from fear of becoming bewitched.
‘Elder is the lady’s tree burn it not or cursed you’ll be’ – Wiccan Rede, quoted in the Hedgerow Apothecary
However its not all doom and gloom with this lovely tree, also associated with protection, rebirth and the faerie realm, so much so that it is said if you stand under an elder tree at midnight on midsummer’s eve you will see a glimpse of the faerie realm pass you by.
The flowers were made into salves by mixing them with lard then applied to treat scalds and burns, also infused with honey to make a tea that would aid in soothing the symptoms of hay fever.
The way the flowers were used back then isn’t far from how they are used today by modern herbalists, the dried flowers are still used as a tea to alleviate the symptoms of cold and flu, in particular sinus congestion, and has also been shown to reduce the production of mucus in hay fever sufferers, the dried berries are more commonly known for their antiviral properties, and can be found in many chemists sold as syrups and tinctures to help in warding of colds and flu.
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Midsummer brew ice tea recipe
As well as making a sweet summer brew, this blend also makes a very refreshing ice tea! It has quite a long steeping time but it’s nice and easy to prepare!
The measurements in this recipe are a guide as it depends on how strong you like the mix but I generally use 1 tbsp to half a litre of water.
To start, fill the kettle with fresh water and bring to the boil, then add 1 tbsp of midsummer brew to a jug, pour half a litre of freshly boiled water into the jug, leave it to cool, once cooled you can add a few sliced strawberries (optional) into the jug, cover and pop in the fridge, you can either leave this overnight or leave for about 6 hours.
Once its nicely steeped, strain the mixture through a fine sieve, if you’ve added strawberry slices they should be nice and soft so I usually press them through the sieve with a spoon, sweeten to taste either with honey or sugar, if you want you can add a few fresh slices of strawberry to garnish or keep it simple with a handful of ice cubes! Enjoy!
