To make dandelion jelly, follow these steps: Ingredients:
- 2 to 4 cups dandelion petals (yellow parts only, no green)
- 4 to 4.5 cups water
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 box powdered pectin (about 1.75 oz or 6 tbsp)
- 3 to 4 cups granulated sugar
Instructions:
- Harvest and Prepare Petals: Pick about 8 cups of dandelion flower heads to yield 2 to 4 cups of petals after removing the green parts. Separate the yellow petals carefully, discarding the greens
- Make Dandelion Tea: Pour boiling water over the dandelion petals in a bowl or jar and let steep for at least 1 hour, or up to 24 hours. Then strain the petals, pressing to extract all the liquid. You should have about 3.5 to 4 cups of dandelion tea
- Cook Jelly Base: Pour the dandelion tea into a large pot. Add 2 tablespoons lemon juice and the powdered pectin. Bring the mixture to a hard boil over high heat, stirring constantly
- Add Sugar and Boil: Add 3 to 4 cups sugar all at once, stir to dissolve, and return to a rolling boil. Boil for 1 to 2 minutes while stirring. Skim off any foam that forms on top
- Jar and Seal: Remove from heat and ladle the hot jelly into sterilized jars, leaving about 1/4 inch headspace. Wipe rims, seal with lids and bands finger-tight. You can refrigerate the jelly for immediate use or process jars in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes for shelf stability
- Cool and Set: Let the jars cool undisturbed for 12 to 48 hours to allow the jelly to fully set before storing
This process yields a sweet, honey-like jelly with a delicate floral flavor reminiscent of spring sunshine
. Summary:
- Harvest petals, steep in boiling water to make tea
- Boil tea with lemon juice and pectin
- Add sugar, boil briefly, skim foam
- Jar and seal; refrigerate or water bath can
- Cool and allow jelly to set fully
This method is straightforward and uses common jelly-making techniques with the unique ingredient of dandelion petals
