The other day, a friend of mine (find Carolyn here) posted that she had just made lilac jelly. This intrigued me.Apparently i had missed the memo that lilacs are edible...After researching some recipes, she pointed me towards this one by the The 3 Foragers.
I adapted this recipe so I could use honey instead of sugar and Pamona's Universal Pectin instead of Sure-Jell. It turned out great! It tastes like honey with a hint of floral/lilac flavor.
What you need:
* 2 cups of lilacs (minus the stems and leaves)
* 2 teaspoons of Pamona's universal pectin
* 2 teaspoons of calcium water (The calcium mixture comes with Pamona's pectin. You will mix the powder with water as it says in the directions that come inside the box.)
* 4 tablespoons of Lemon Juice
* 1/2 cup of raw honey
Directions:
* Pick your lilacs (make sure they have not been sprayed).
* Separate the flowers from the leaves and stems.
* Rinse the flowers and then place them in a mason Jar.
* Pour 2 1/2 cups of boiling water over your flowers, cover, and let sit for about eight hours.
* Once your flowers have hung out on the counter for the eight(ish) hours, strain the flowers from the liquid, discard the flowers and then pour the remaining liquid into a small pot.
* Now add your lemon juice and 2 1/2 teaspoons of the calcium water.
* Turn the stove on and bring the liquid mixture to a boil.
* In the meantime, mix your honey and 2 teaspoons of pectin.
* Once the liquid on the stove has come to a boil, add the honey and pectin mixture and stir well for 2 minutes.
* Skim any foam from the top of your jelly mixture, and then pour it into your sterilized jars.
* Process your jars in a water-bath for 10 minutes.
Ta-da! You now have four 4oz. jars of lovely lilac honey jellly!
