Elderflower Delight
I love Turkish delight but all the packaging that comes in shop-bought sweets is so disheartening! So making your own, which takes about 40 mins, is so much better for the soul and is still very tasty! This recipe is adapted from River Cottage’s recipe to make it vegan - so you don’t have to feel guilty about the pork gelatine!
If you can’t get enough elderflower from foraging, you can add in some lavender! This is a good sugar substitute, as well.
Ingredients:
20 elderflower sprays (forage these yourself - here’s how!)
700g granulated sugar
400ml water
130g cornflour
1 tablespoon of pectin
30g icing sugar
The juice of 2 lemons
Juice the 2 lemons. Then remove the elderflowers from the elderflower sprigs and wrap them into a tied-up muslin bag or cloth. Line a baking tray with baking paper and a 50:50 mix of icing sugar and cornflour. Set these aside.
Next, add the 700g of sugar to a very large pan with the fresh lemon juice and just 300 ml of water. Using medium heat, heat the pan whilst stirring gently with a whisk until all the sugar has dissolved.
In a small bowl, mix 100g cornflour and 100 ml of water into a smooth paste and pour into the pan and stir.
Then, add a tablespoon of pectin. Stir and bring the mixture to a boil and the mixture will start to thicken. Turn the heat down to a simmer.
Next, place the elderflower into the mixture so it is immersed in the thickening liquid and continue to simmer for 20 minutes before removing the elderflower. Make sure you use the whisk to keep it immersed and occasionally squish the muslin bag/cloth to get the elderflower flavour out of the mix. After 20 minutes, you should have a very thick and gooey mixture that smells delicious!
Now pour the mixture into the baking tray, cover with paper and leave to set in a cool, dry place, such as a cupboard or cold oven.
Once fully set and fairly rubbery, dust with more icing sugar and cornflour mix. Cut it into squares and roll each one in the leftover icing sugar and cornflour mix. Now it is time to enjoy your delicious, homemade, vegan Turkish delight!
