Dandelion Jelly

I tried this both with the zest and without. I would definitely recommend NOT using the zest. It was inedible, and I ended up throwing that batch out. Happily, the quart of tightly packed leaves and two quarts of water produces almost exactly enough to make two batches, so I was able to make the second batch without the zest. Much more the honey-taste that others have noted. Slight bitter/wild taste from the dandelions, but still an interesting overall product. The 10 minutes prep time obviously does not include the time it takes both to pick the dandelions and to remove the green parts. It took approximately 1,000 blossoms to result in 1 quart of tightly packed petals. Removing the green part from 1,000 blossoms took almost 90 minutes, even after I got the hang of it. In re: boiling until it sheets off the spoon, I tried that on the first batch and gave up after about six minutes. On the second batch, I followed the Sure-Jell directions (boil at full rolling boil for 1 minute, then remove from heat), and that batch gelled nicely. Like one of the other posters, I WBC the jelly for 5 minutes.

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This is my first attempt at dandelion jelly. With the abundance of this crop in our farm yard I should have been making this a staple food many years ago. I made the larger batch with pectin, and the only thing I did differently was to add 1/2 tsp butter to cut any foam (which there was none to skim) and use my vegetable peeler to make long strips of the lemon zest to add, which I removed after the cooking process. The candied lemon zest is an added bonus if you like citrus!
My jelly is not a light yellow like the photos, and in fact after filtering the juice, it looked mossy green. After the jelly making process in the half pint jars it is more of a dark golden color - maybe like a dark honey color. I wonder if soil type and other stuff I don't know about would affect the natural color. Anyway, my final thought is I will be making this a regular spring activity. The jelly is unique - the after taste is a bit like green tea - and it is very wonderful. Thank-you Rita for sharing this recipe.

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I just made this last night...for Mother's Day my kids and I picked a ton of dandelion flowers and I proceeded to make the jelly!! I used vanilla extract and a little orange zest instead of lemon ( I did use the lemon juice though) The kids had it for breakfast this morning and they LOVED it!!! Thanks for sharing the recipe!! I still can't believe how easy it was...

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This was WAY too sweet for my taste...next time I will use Pomona's Pectin and cut the sugar in half. Had a beautiful afternoon in the pasture picking flowers listening to the frogs sing...I would recommend this recipe just for the joy of gathering the flowers.

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2011 this year I replaced the lemon zest with orange zest. And added two packets of True Orange. I also added 1 tsp. of Cinnamon Plus (recipe on this site). SUPER! 2010I changed this a bit to work with what I had. I skipped the lemon zest, reduced the sugar to 4 cups (and used a mixture of organic brown sugar, and white) which gave it a beautiful dark honey color...and put in 1 tsp. vanilla extract . Turned out great. We eat jelly pretty much just as a sweetener for oatmeal, and my two toddlers just LOVED this. They also liked "helping" pick dandelions. Thanks for a fun recipe.

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Tastes fantastic, Rita -- thanks so much for gifting it to us elves!

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This is a delightful recipe! I had over twice as much liquid after boiling the dandelions so, out of curiosity, I added a bit of honey and got the loveliest, most soothing tea. It is very much like chamomile; herbal and smooth and comforting. I didn't add the lemon zest for the jelly and thought the taste was perfect. This is sure to be a family favorite!

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I made this without the zest and with normal sugar, and it turned out delicious! I recommend using a little organic food coloring, otherwise it comes out green-yellow. It tastes a bit like floral honey- definitely a winner!

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Excellent! I love this!! Now, I can have my biscuits with the scrumptous honey flavor that I love at a much cheaper cost. I left out the lemon zest as suggested by others. I added 3 drops of yellow food dye for that golden color. I also processed it in a water bath for 5 minutes. My kids took two jars to school to their teachers whom requested some. Thanks for posting. Easy to make and very yummy. I will be making this again.

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I love this as is, but next time I plan on leaving out the lemon zest. It overtakes the flower flavor a bit. Thanks Rita!

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Again, I had the honor of receiving a gift of this from the chef herself:D The delicate honey taste was right on the mark and was exactly what I thought of when I tried this. BF will also enjoy this quite a bit as he likes honey on his toast. Thanks Rita!

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Just the most amazing jelly, made even tastier because I had it made by the original Chef herself, Rita! My DH compared the flavour as a cross between jelly and honey. It has a light, delicate flavour that is not too sweet. We just love this stuff and I can't wait to try making my own! Thanks Rita, you are a doll! :)

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I made two batches of this jelly and had nothing but compliments on it. The only alteration I made was leaving out the lemon zest since I wanted a totally clear jelly. I hope I have enough to last me until next spring. I have a whole new respect for dandelions now, they are welcome in my lawn anytime! Thanks for the recipe. Update: I won 2 Blue Ribbons with this jelly at the Country Fair in 2006. Trying again in 2007!!

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I made this jelly last weekend after researching numerous other recipes. I doubled it immediately, as I have made jellies before so felt comfortable doing this. I strained the flowers through the coffee filters about 4 or 5 times using the clarity of the jelly and ease in straining as criteria. I like to believe doing this improved the clarity of the jelly, but it may well have been only my craziness! When friends and family heard of my making this jelly, they were sure I'd crossed over from "loopy" to "wacko"--however, everyone who tasted the jelly proclaimed it to be like eating honey and delicious. Thanks for the recipe. I'm making it again as I type!

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