Dandelion Jelly

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A weed is anything that grows where you don’t want it to.  Years ago, we were trying to have the perfectly manicured suburban lawn.  Lush and green without any weeds of any kind.  After spending a single season ripping out everything that was undesirable, and trying to get the grass to thrive, we realized we were fighting a losing battle.  Short of dousing the entire yard in chemicals and starting over, we weren’t going to have that perfectly green lawn.  

Around that time, we also belonged to a CSA – a farm where we would go each week to pick up our share of the fruits, vegetables, and herbs.  They would have bunches of dandelion greens in the farm stand and people would go crazy over them!  

Wait, people are going crazy over eating a weed!?

It absolutely blew my mind.  I picked up a bunch, and added them to our salad greens that week.  You know what?  They were delicious!  Who knew this annoying weed that most of us have taking over our yards would actually taste good.  I began looking for recipes that utilized dandelions.

Then a few years ago, I found a recipe for Dandelion Jelly which utilized the yellow petals instead of the leaves.  Curiosity got the better of me.  We attempted to make it that first year, but it was so labor intensive separating all of the yellow petals, the fluff, from the greens that we gave up before we got started.  The following year, we started mowing the yard early and never got many dandelions that formed a flower.  

This year, all of that changed.  The mild winter turned into a mild spring.  Dandelions grow incredibly well in our yard and they popped up everywhere.  My daughter spent the better part of a day picking flowers and separating the petals so we could finally make our Dandelion Jelly.

Making Dandelion Petal Tea

Pick dandelions from an area that have not been sprayed with pesticides or weed killers.  If you have dogs, you’ll want to avoid the dandelions in the part of the yard that they frequent as well.  

You will need to pick a lot of flowers.  Then, using kitchen scissors, snip off the greens and leave the yellow fluff (petals) behind.  You’ll need about 8 cups of packed petals.

Once you have all of the petals, pour boiling water over them and let them steep overnight.  When you are ready to make your jelly, pour the dandelion petal tea through a fine sieve or coffee filter to strain out all of the petals, and leave the liquid behind.  This dandelion petal tea will be the base of your jelly.

Dandelion Jelly Recipe

4 cups of dandelion petal tea
1/4 cup bottled lemon juice
6 Tbsp Ball Classic Pectin
5 1/4 cups sugar

In a large pot, combine the dandelion petal tea, lemon juice, and pectin. Whisk over medium heat until the pectin is fully dissolved. Bring this mixture to a rolling boil that can’t be stirred down.

Add the full volume of sugar at once. Then, whisk to combine. Bring the jelly to a rolling boil that can’t be stirred down. Once it reaches a rolling boil, allow it to boil untouched for 1 solid minute.

Remove your jelly pot from the heat. Skim off any foam, and fill your hot jars with 1/4 inch of headspace. Top with lids and rings, and process in a boiling water bath canner for 10 minutes (adjust time based on your altitude). After processing, remove the jars to a tea towel on the counter to prevent thermal shock.  Allow the jars to cool undisturbed for 24-hours. 

Store jars with the rings off in a cool, dark, dry place.  Your jelly is best used within one year, but is considered safe as long as it is still sealed.  

Dandelion Jelly tastes like honey, which is incredible.  With only a few tweaks to the ingredients list, you can make sure your dandelion jelly is vegan.  I’m interested to see if I can use a melted dandelion jelly in recipes that otherwise call for honey, and look forward to experimenting in the kitchen.