OF SUNDRY HERBS 61 



ELDER VINEGAR. Put dryed Elder flowers into Stone 

 or double Glass Bottles, fill them up with good Wine Vinegar, 

 and set them up in the Sun or by the Fire till their Virtue is 

 extracted. Ibid. 



ELDER FLOWER FRITTERS.- Gather your Bunches of 

 Elder Flowers, just as they are beginning to open, for that 

 is the time of their Perfection, they have just then a very 

 fine Smell and a spirited Taste, but afterwards they grow 

 dead and faint; we complain of these Flowers having a 

 sickly Smell, but this is only when they are decaying, when 

 fresh and just open they have the same Flavour, but it is 

 spirited and just the contrary of what it is afterwards. The 

 Elder Flowers being thus chosen, break each Bunch into 

 four regular Parts, lay these carefully in a Soup Dish ; break 

 in a Stick of Cinnamon, pour to them a Wine Glass of 

 Brandy; and when this has stood a Minute or two, add 

 half a Pint of Sack, stir the Flowers about in the Liquor, 

 cover them up, and-let them Soak about an Hour, in covering 

 and stirring them about at Times, to see how they are kept 

 moist ; put a Handful of the finest Flour into a Stew-pan, 

 add the Yolks of four Eggs beaten, and afterwards their 

 Whites beat up quite to a Foam; add some White Wine 

 and a little Salt, and put in the Whites of the Eggs last : 

 Let all this be very perfectly and thoroughly mixed ; when 

 the Batter is thus made, set on a Quantity of Hog's Lard 

 in a Stew-pan, when it is very hot, fry the Fritters, the 

 Method is this : The Elder Flowers are to be taken out of 

 their Liquor, and put into the Batter, and the Quantity for 

 each Fritter is one of the Bunches of Elder, with as much 

 Batter as agreeably covers it, and hangs well about it. 

 While they are frying, heat the Dish they are to be sent 

 up in, rub a Lemon upon it, not cut, and lay in the Fritters 

 as they come out of the Pan, strew a little of the finest 

 Orange-flower Water over them, and serve them up. Ibid. 



ELDER WINE. To every Gallon of Water a peck of 

 berries. To every Gallon of Juice three pounds of Sugar, 



