Featured on ITV's Love Your Weekend with Alan Titchmarsh, 31 May 2026, Jekka's Elderflower Cordial and Heartsease Ice Cubes celebrate the beauty and flavour of early summer. Fragrant elderflowers, edible blooms and garden-grown herbs come together in two simple recipes that are perfect for summer gatherings, garden parties and seasonal celebrations.
Perfect for summer entertaining, both recipes bring a touch of elegance to drinks and celebrations. Whether enjoyed together or prepared separately, they offer a wonderful way to make the most of seasonal flowers while adding colour, fragrance and a little garden-inspired magic to the occasion.
Featured Ingredients
- Elderflower (Sambucus nigra)
- Heartsease (Viola tricolor)
- Mint (Mentha) (if used as garnish)
Jekka and Alan on Love Your Weekend celebrating wedding florals and herbs
Inspired by the herbs featured on the programme? Join us at our June Open Days to explore Jekka's Herb Garden and discover many of these varieties growing at the farm.
Jekka’s Elderflower Cordial
Elderflowers are best picked on a dry, sunny day, as much of the natural yeast is held in the pollen.
Ingredients:
Makes approximately 4.5 litres
- 4.5 litres water
- 700 g sugar
- Juice and thinly peeled rind of 1 lemon
- 30 ml / 2 tablespoons cider or wine vinegar
- 12 elderflower heads
Jekka's top tip: Elderflower is traditionally harvested in late spring and early summer when the flowers are fully open and richly scented. Pick on a dry morning for the best flavour and aroma.
Steps:
- Bring the water to the boil, then pour it into a sterilised container.
- Add the sugar and stir until dissolved.
- Leave to cool.
- Once cool, add the lemon juice and thinly peeled rind, the vinegar and the elderflower heads.
- Cover with several layers of muslin and leave for 24 hours.
- Strain through the muslin into strong, sterilised glass bottles.
- Leave for 2 weeks before drinking.
- Serve chilled, diluted to taste with still or fizzy water. For a wedding drink, serve with heartsease ice cubes.
Elderflower (Sambucus nigra)
Heartsease Ice Cubes
These pretty floral ice cubes are a simple way to decorate summer drinks. Heartsease works especially well because the flowers are small enough to sit neatly inside an ice cube. Use edible flowers that have been grown without chemicals and picked fresh from the garden.
You will need:
- Fresh heartsease flowers
- Cold water
- Ice cube tray
Steps:
- Pick the heartsease flowers on a dry day, choosing fresh, open flowers.
- Check each flower carefully and gently remove any insects or damaged petals.
- Place one flower, face down, into each section of an ice cube tray.
- Half-fill the tray with cold water and freeze until solid. This helps hold the flowers in place.
- Once frozen, top up each section with more cold water and return to the freezer until completely frozen.
- Use the ice cubes straight from the freezer in chilled drinks
Heartsease (Viola tricolor)
Want to know more?
We hope Jekka’s Elderflower Cordial & Heartsease Ice Cubes inspire you to bring more fresh herbs into your kitchen and summer celebrations. Herbs have an extraordinary ability to add flavour, fragrance and beauty to even the simplest of dishes, and this recipe is a wonderful example of how versatile they can be.
If you enjoyed this recipe, explore more seasonal inspiration in our collection of herb-based recipes on our website, from herb breads and pestos to refreshing drinks, desserts and garden-inspired dishes. You can discover them here: Jekka’s Herb-Based Recipes.
For those wishing to experience the herbs firsthand, we would love to welcome you to our upcoming Open Days on the 5th and 6th June 2026 at Jekka’s Herb Farm. Explore Jekka’s Herb Garden and Herbetum, enjoy guided tours and seasonal talks, and discover the flavours, stories and history behind many of the herbs featured in our recipes. Find out more and book tickets here: Jekka’s Open Days & Tickets.