When Bonnie brought us a bottle of her Dandelion Jelly to sample a while back, I was skeptical. Mind you, dandelion leaves are really, really, delicious when cooked as a green vegetable with Jiggs Dinner – as long as the leaves are harvested in early summer. BUT I have always found the dandelion flower to be extremely bitter when used for jams or wines. UNTIL NOW!
It is absolutely delicious! Bonnie found the original recipe on a Facebook site. From there she experimented and perfected it to suit her taste. You really should give it a try. You won’t be disappointed. Thanks so much for sharing it, Bonnie.
Ingredients
3 cups dandelion petals
4 cups boiling water
4 cups sugar
2 tbsp lemon juice
1 pkg (1.75 oz) pectin powder
TIP: (For best results, harvest the first crop of dandelion flowers from your garden in late Spring. Be sure to only use yellow flower heads)
Directions
Place flower heads in a large bowl; pour the 4 cups of boiling water over the petals. Allow to cool and refrigerate for 24 hours. Strain the flower heads using cheesecloth (or curtain material). Squeeze the petals to extract as much of the dandelion tea as possible. The yield will be between 3 ½ to 4 cups.
Pour the tea into a two quart pot, add lemon juice and pectin and bring to a boil. Add sugar and return to a rolling boil for 3 to 4 minutes stirring constantly. Remove from heat and pour into sterilized jars. Process in a hot water bath for 10 minutes.
Makes 6 half-pint jelly jars.
The original recipe said to do the rolling boil for 2 minutes but I always found it didn’t jell properly so I increased the time and haven’t had a failure since.
Nutritional Value of Dandelions
From root to flower, dandelions are highly nutritious plants loaded with vitamins, minerals, and fiber.
- Dandelion greens can be eaten cooked or raw and are an excellent source of vitamins A, C, and K. They also contain vitamin E, folate, and small amounts of other B vitamins. Dandelion greens provide several minerals, including iron, calcium, magnesium, and potassium.
- Dandelion root is rich in the carbohydrate inulin, a type of soluble fiber found in plants that supports the growth and maintenance of healthy gut bacteria in your digestive tract
- Dandelion root is often dried and made into tea, but you can also eat it whole like other root vegetables.
- Dandelions are a rich source of beta carotene and polyphenol compounds, both of which may neutralize harmful free radicals and protect against chronic disease.
- You can eat the flower fresh in salads and soups and use them to make dandelion jelly, syrup, or infused honey. When dried, the flowers make a healthy tea, and you can infuse vinegar with the dried flowers to make a homemade vinaigrette
