Jasmine & Ginger Cordial

I got this recipe from a friend named Alice, who got it from her boss, who said that you could make a syrup from any kind of edible flower; jasmine, roses, honeysuckle, lavender, violets, the entirety of your neighbours perfectly manicured garden could be cordialised and bottled if you wanted.

Spring has exploded around here, the jasmine vine at the bottom of our garden has puffed out into a plume of fragrance that reminds me of twilight bbq's and beers in the pool. Summer's a comin' lovelies and it's time to catch up!

The process of infusing the flowers in the sugar syrup kind of reminds me of that movie Perfume, you know that part where Jean-Baptiste travels from Paris to Grasse to learn how to capture the essence of flowers to make perfume? This is the same deal, minus the serial killer undertones. I added some sliced ginger to the mix to add a little heat, I wanted the jasmine to be subtle, and to not taste like the contents of Grandmas soap dish. I bet you can see or at least smell jasmine right now, it's everywhere, go pick a few bunches.

Jasmine & Ginger Cordial
adapted from Alices recipe (merci beaucoup!)


2 cups caster sugar
1 cup water
1 cup picked and rinsed jasmine flowers
1 knob of ginger, peeled and thinly sliced

Combine sugar and water in a saucepan over medium-high heat and stir with a wooden spoon until all the sugar has dissolved (this is called a simple syrup for future reference). When all the sugar has dissolved and has a syrupy consistency, remove from the heat and add the jasmine flowers and the sliced ginger. Leave to infuse for 1 hour, stirring occasionally. After 1 hour strain the syrup into a jar or bottle and seal. Will keep for ages! the syrup is great mixed with sparkling mineral water and a slice of lemon on a hot spring day.