Elderflower Bread. A recipe from long ago, almost as old as I am, surely older. There was a time when we moved to the countryside; in the family, the garden was never missing, but after moving to the north, we really missed the direct contact with nature, my dad worked in a factory, he felt the need to find some more satisfaction. So we moved again. The house in the countryside, the cows, the wood stove… His dream. Although he hadn’t left his job, this new setup filled him with satisfaction.

We cultivated and produced everything the family needed, the surplus was put up for sale. I spent part of my adolescence in the hills of Monferrato, in contact with nature. During that time, I learned to do many things: the garden, cheese, I learned to take care of the animals and even to drive the tractor. I spent my days between school and working in the fields.

I knew the passage of seasons, waiting for blooms and changes. I learned to better recognize edible herbs, the flowers for preparing fritters. The elderflower among them, I especially became familiar with when I learned that they were used to find water underground, and dowsers used a Y-shaped rod. Because of this magic, I started to take an interest in its properties. I already used the flowers for fritters, and over time, also for other recipes including bread with elderflowers, not just one version…