In the south London neighborhood, known as Little Portugal on Google maps, a thriving community exists. The local corner shop surprises us with unfamiliar crisp flavors and vegetables, while the discovery of a back street café adorned with magnificent azulejos, the typical blue and white tiles of the region, always captivates us.
Another surprising aspect of this area is the endless foraging opportunities that the Portuguese find here. They harvest crab apples from the row of trees by the local estate agent in autumn and gather from the big fig tree outside our house in the summer, despite the fruit not ripening. When we asked what they do with it, they informed us that it makes the best preserve, leaving a jar by our front door for us to try.
Curiously, the Portuguese overlook the elderflowers, but we seize the opportunity. Armed with a step ladder and secateurs, we plunder all the white frothy trees between South Lambeth Road and Clapham Road to make cordial for our restaurants. Our ambition is to make enough to last until September, but we rarely make it to August. During one of our foraging missions, some of our neighbors stopped by to inquire about our activities. We promised them a bottle of cordial upon completion, even if it means competing for the blooms next year.
Delicate in flavor, these barely set, milky white creams are the perfect complement to the cordial. If you’re new to working with gelatin, don’t worry! It’s a well-behaved ingredient. We use a standard supermarket brand and simply follow the instructions.
If fresh elderflower is not available for the cordial base, you can substitute 200ml of store-bought elderflower cordial.
Elderflower creams with poached nectarines
Serves 6-8 as dessert
For the homemade cordial base:
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Prepare the cordial by heating the sugar, water, honey, and lemon zest and juice in a small saucepan until it begins to boil. Add the elderflower blossoms and simmer for one minute (or boil the store-bought cordial).
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Add the nectarine wedges to the boiling liquid and poach for 30 seconds if soft, or one minute if firm. Remove the pan from heat and let it sit for 15-20 minutes.
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Remove the nectarine wedges and place them in a bowl along with three tablespoons of the cooking liquid. Return the remaining liquid to low heat, add the cream, and mix well.
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Soak the gelatin in ice-cold water for five to ten minutes. Once the cream and syrup mixture begins to boil, remove the pan from heat. Squeeze out the excess water from the gelatin and add it to the cream.
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Stir to dissolve the gelatin, then strain the mixture through a fine sieve into a large serving bowl or eight individual glasses. Refrigerate for at least three to four hours until set.
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Garnish with the poached nectarines and the remaining cooking liquid before serving.
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