After losing hundreds of seedlings to a late spring frost, I decided to take my mind off the minor disaster and make something groovy.
The groovy thing I made was Chive Blossom Vinegar. It’s really simple but somehow extremely satisfying.
First of all find yourself a clump of Chives and snip off the flowers. (You can leave some stalk on them if you like…I didn’t this time)
Wash the chives if you like…(I didn’t) but make sure they have dried before you proceed. Then pop them into an airtight jar. I used a coffee jar with a plastic seal…don’t use a metal lid…or you may get ‘melt down’ and things could turn nasty…
I used White Vinegar because I’m looking for a really clear pink vinegar to develop but you could use Apple Cyder Vinegar (Aspall do a good one)
The colours are just amazing….and if you look at them carefully enough and for long enough you forget that frost ever existed.
Then leave the jar in a dark place for two weeks. …Yes I know the above isn’t a dark place but I presume you know what a dark place looks like…
The mixture should turn bright pink within the fortnight…then strain and add fresh Chive flowers if you wish to please the eye…
I shall update this post when the two weeks have elapsed…
So far the Chive flowers are my favorite edible flower…they taste ggrrrrrreat just on their own and have a wonderful crunch.
Kind regards
Ben
For other edible flower posts clickerty chip…
May 5, 2011 @ 10:23 am
Sorry to hear you were caught out by Jack Frost. Ous spuds took a frosting but I think it will just slow them down.
Lovely looking jar of Chive Flowers, it seems a pity to put it in a dark place :) Look forward to seeing the end product.
May 4, 2011 @ 9:42 pm
Oh, I sympathise hugely – i lost ALL my cosmos seedlings last night and tons of other plants are beginning to shrivel up because of the drought. Frost and drought – what a horrible combo. It is depressing and does put me off the tender stuff…
Hey ho, onwards and upwards! xx
May 5, 2011 @ 8:36 am
The rewards will be great…a battle lost…journey not destination…er…shall I go and stand in the corner?
My cosmos seemed ok….if I have any spares I’ll bring them to Wildacre…it my Dahlias I’m brassed off about…I was looking forward to their mentalness. x
May 4, 2011 @ 7:26 pm
Sorry to hear about your seedlings – how depressing. Anything major? The vinegar looks lovely. I don’t have any chives (how has that happened?) but am meeting friends who have loads tomorrow so will “coincidentally” arrive with a couple of bottles of white vinegar! x
May 4, 2011 @ 8:03 pm
The door of mini greenhouse was open…lost all dahlias…..most zinnias…most tithonias….it took out an established Buddleia too… Vinegar making is great however…mine is going pink already…and it looks amazing….apparently (and I should mention this in the post) it will fade within hours in the sunlight back to white….
May 5, 2011 @ 2:10 pm
Withypit Dahlias say it’s not too late to take dahlia cuttings so it might be worth going down the allotments and asking if anyone has any side shoots they’re about to pinch out. Or maybe ask on Twitter? And just keep sowing. Your summer colours might be a bit late but don’t give up! x