DIY Dandelion and Violet Jelly



We did canning for the first time ever, using the most simple ingredients! We took a lot of pictures along the way to share with you all. 

Step 1: Harvest Flowers

We employed the children to help with this task. We picked 10 cups of dandelions and 3 cups of violets. 




Step 2: Prepare Flowers

 This step took the longest for the dandelions. We used scissors to cut off the bottoms of the flower and pulled off every bit of green. We set all of the greens aside as a treat for the rabbits, who were quite happy! The violets can go in whole, just make sure the stem is gone. When done there should be 3 cups of each flower.




Step 3: Tea

Next you boil enough water to cover the flowers. Pour boiling water over the flowers and let it rest until cool. We let some rest longer than overnight and are pleased with how those turned out. We then used a mesh strainer to separate the flowers from the tea. Measure out three cups of the tea. 



Step 4: Cooking

First, start heating a large tub of water for the next step. Next, pour the 3 cups of tea into a pan. Add 2 Tbs of lemon juice and 3.5 Tbs of powdered pectin. Wait for it to boil. Add 2.5 cups of sugar and wait for the reboil. We did much less sugar than the recipe called for and were pleased with the results. Once it is boiling again, we let it cook for two minutes. The longer it cooks, the more "jelly" like it becomes. Once the two minutes are up you are ready to can! 


Step 5: Canning

While our jelly was cooking we washed out the cans we were going to use. We then filled them with hot tap water. When the jelly was done cooking, we poured the mixture into a container that was easier to pour and then we used a canning funnel to pour the hot jelly into the jars. When doing this step make sure to fill the jars enough, with 1/4 inch head space. Our first time we didn't fill them enough, which can hinder the process. We tightened the lids onto the jars (be careful- they are HOT). We placed them onto the canning rack, reading to go into the pot. Once the water was boiling in the pot we placed the canning rack in. Check canning times for your altitude, but we waited for the reboil and then canned for 10 minutes. Once it is done, we used a special canning tool to remove them from the water without getting burned and placed them on an old towel to cool and set for 12-24 hours. 


Step 6: Enjoy your Jelly!

We find the dandelion jelly tastes very similar to honey and the violet jelly tastes like grape jelly. Yum! We can't wait to spread it over fresh bread. 



Resources:

Here are the original recipes that we used and tweaked a little, along with some basic canning information that we used. 


http://www.simplycanning.com/dandelion-jelly.html

https://thenerdyfarmwife.com/sweet-springtime-violet-jelly/

https://www.freshpreserving.com/waterbath-canning.html



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