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Every year, I can’t wait for the lilac to bloom, and every year, I’m sad when it fades again a few weeks later. That’s why I try to preserve those beautiful flowers as best as I can and thus prolong their season. Contrary to popular opinion, lilac flowers are not toxic. In fact, any variety of lilacs (Syringa spp.) is edible. One of my favourite recipes is this homemade lilac syrup. Its colour is stunning, and lilac syrup in a lemonade or on top of ice cream adds an extravagant touch!

For the colour, however, we must use a trick, as it does not come from the lilac itself. Nevertheless, it’s totally natural and organic. I’ll show you how to do it.

Lilac syrup

Yield: 500 ml

Ingredients

a bowl full of lilac flowers:
make sure to use unsprayed lilac; also, do not use lilac from a roadside where it gets polluted by exhaust fumes and dust

250 ml water

250 g sugar

3 – 4 blueberries for the colour

1 tbsp lemon juice

Instructions

1. Carefully pluck the flowers off the stems. Make sure that nothing green gets into the bowl, only the flowers. The green parts of the flowers would make the syrup bitter.

2. Carefully wash the flowers with cold water.

3. Put the water and sugar into a pot and boil the solution while constantly stirring it. The sugar must be dissolved completely.

4. Remove the pot from the heat and add the blueberries and lemon juice. Stir slightly until the liquid has the colour you like.

Blueberries give our lilac syrup that wonderfully light lavender hue.

5. Let the syrup cool down to room temperature. Now, add the lilac flowers and stir them slightly in.

Cover the pot and let it all rest for about 18 – 24 hours.

The lilac syrup is ready to rest for about 18 – 24 hours

6. Strain the mixture through a fine strainer into another pot. Gently press the last syrup out of the lilac flowers.

7. The mixture is ready for use now, but it will only last 2 – 3 days in the fridge.

If you want to preserve it for longer, bring the syrup to a short boil once more and pour the hot liquid into glass bottles. Close them immediately with lids. Preserved that way, lilac syrup can be stored up to 18 months. Once you open a bottle, consume the syrup within 2 – 3 days.

Alternatively, you can freeze the lilac syrup.

How to use lilac syrup

Beverages

• Stir a tablespoon into a glass of iced tea for a floral afternoon refreshment
• Add to sparkling water with a squeeze of lemon
• Mix into a lemonade
• Use in cocktails instead of plain sugar syrup
• Sweeten your morning coffee or latte

Breakfast

• Drizzle over pancakes, waffles, or French toast instead of maple syrup, dandelion honey or spruce tip honey
• Swirl into plain yoghurt with fresh berries and granola
• Blend into smoothie bowls
• Stir into overnight oats with sliced almonds and blueberries
• Brush onto warm scones fresh from the oven

Desserts

• Brush onto cake layers before frosting for added moisture and flavour
• Drizzle over vanilla ice cream
• Mix into whipped cream for a floral topping on desserts
• Use as a sweetener in homemade popsicles with berries

Angela Braun

Lilac Syrup

This elegant syrup adds a touch of botanical sophistication to cocktails, lemonades, and iced teas. Drizzle it over pancakes or waffles, stir into yoghurt, or use as a finishing touch for cakes and pastries.

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Prep Time 20 minutes mins

Cook Time 10 minutes mins

Resting time 1 day d

Course: Preserve

Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients

  

• a bowl full of lilac flowers
• 250 ml water
• 250 g sugar
• 3 - 4 blueberries for the colour
• 1 tbsp lemon juice

Method

 

1. Carefully plug the flowers off the stems. Make sure that nothing green gets into the bowl, only the flowers.
2. Wash the flowers with cold water.
3. Put the water and sugar into a pot and boil it while constantly stirring. The sugar must be dissolved completely.
4. Remove the pot from the heat and add the blueberries and lemon juice. Stir slightly until the liquid has the colour you like.
5. Let the syrup cool down to room temperature, add the lilac flowers, cover the pot and let it all rest for about 18 - 24 hours.
6. Pour the mixture through a fine sieve into another pot. Gently press the last syrup out of the lilac flowers.
7. The mixture is ready for use now but will only last 2 - 3 days in the fridge. If you want to preserve it for longer, bring the syrup to a boil once more and the boiling liquid into glass bottles.  Alternatively, you can freeze the lilac syrup.

Notes

Add lilac syrup to cocktails, lemonades and iced teas. Mix it with sparkling wine and you have an extravagant aperitif. 

However, lilac syrup is not only for drinks. Get creative and drizzle it over pancakes or waffles, stir it into yoghurt, or use it as a finishing touch for cakes and pastries.