The countryside is scattered with elder trees that are in full blossom. Everywhere you look you’ll see the lacy, cream flowers in hedgerows.

The flowers have a scent like lemon with tropical notes. The flowers have a limited season in early summer and will eventually transform into inky, black berries. There are many ways to capture this fine crop while it’s here. Elderflower cordial is the most common use and I’ve included a recipe for it. You can add other things to the cordial like hibiscus flowers, rose petals, the last of the gorse to add extra flavour and colour. It will keep in the fridge for a month or so and after that I make sure it’s in a plastic bottle and freeze it. Another alternative is to freeze in ice cube bags. Use as a refreshing drink with sparkling water or wine, to add to poached fruit or to drizzle over summer berries.

Simpler ways to preserve this flower are to submerge it in honey – place the elderflower head in a jam jar and pour over lightly warmed honey. You can add the heads to vinegar to make an elderflower vinegar or heads to a jar of sugar. The vinegar can be used in dressings and is excellent in fish dishes and the sugar can be used in baking to add that hint of summer. Strawberries and elderflower have a similar season and natural affinity. When I started cooking in restaurants, many years ago, a favourite and much talked about dessert was brown bread ice cream. It was a great way of using up leftover wheaten bread and tasted great, despite sounding a little weird. The recipe here doesn’t require an ice cream maker but you will need a temperature probe to make an Italian meringue which is the base of the pudding. Stale wheaten crumbs are softened in cold water, then you make a brown sugar meringue and fold that into whipped cream with some gelatine dissolved in cream. Freeze and then scoop into bowls and serve with some strawberries that have been tossed in an elderflower syrup – the essence of summer.

Mackerel is starting to make an appearance now too. It’s an underrated but really beautiful fish. There’s nothing nicer than catching one and grilling on a barbecue as quickly after catching as possible. Serve with some buttered wheaten bread and you have a feast. The citrus of elderflower works very well with this oily fish and the recipe here has the flowers in two elements. Firstly the flowers are coarsely chopped and mixed with parsley, lemon, hot sauce into yoghurt. For something tangy elderflowers are infused in a pickle liquor for cucumbers. Cook your mackerel on a hot grill pan or barbecue. Cook them skin side down until they crisp up then flip over and finish on the other side. If you can’t get fresh mackerel this recipe works very well with smoked mackerel. Try and source one from here – East Coast seafood in Ballyhornan do a great one that you can source in delis and some farm shops. Either way have some buttered wheaten bread on the side.