Chive flower blossom vinegar
I came home from work this evening knowing that I would be enveloped in raspberries for the better part of the night. Tonight I had raspberry jam making on the agenda.
But before I got down to business, I popped out into the garden to check on something that I have been checking on every evening for the past week. My chives! When-oh-when are those babies going to blossom? Each night I pop my head out the door anxious to see if the flowers will have opened, because I have plans for those babies. I love chives. I could put them in almost anything. Great in a salad, great in salsa, great in chili...you get the picture.
I made tarragon vinegar a couple of months ago and I just can't get enough of it. Flavoured vinegars are amazing and so versatile, so I started to think about what chive blossom vinegar would be like and in my mind, it sounded GREAT!
Flavoured vinegars are so easy, so if like me, you have noticed that your chive blossoms are about to open up their beautiful little blooms and you are wondering what you could do with them, you have come to the right place cause I am about to tell you.
Like me, you wait until those babies have bloomed and the flowers have opened. Then you cut them all off, put them in a big bowl of cold water and give them a good rinse. You are not the only one that has been waiting anxiously for these flowers to open. Numerous insects have been waiting to enjoy them as well and we don't need any protein in our flavoured vinegar. So give them a good rinse. Use a salad spinner if you want to be extra thorough.
Then get your jar, which you will have previously sanitized and stuff the flowers inside it. 1/2 or 3/4 full is what I always aim for. Then depending on your budget you can do one of two things. 1) you can fill that jar full of regular old white vinegar or 2) you can fill the jar full of white wine vinegar. I usually opt for white wine but you can do either.
Then cover that jar with 2 layers of saran wrap and let it sit for at least 2 weeks in a cool dark place. Give the jar a swirl every couple of days. 2 weeks later, strain the liquid, discard the flowers and put your vinegar into a pretty jar of your choice and enjoy!
Not only does this vinegar taste ever so subtly of onions but it will turn a soft purple lavender in colour which makes this vinegar particularly lovely to look at in a jar and makes a great hostess gift for all of the bbq's or cottages you will get invited to this summer.
