Lilac Jelly
Lilac Jelly
I always gather lilacs and make lilac vinegar with them. It’s easy to do. You just put lilac blossoms in a jar and cover them with vinegar. I use a cup of vinegar for every cup of flowers. I let the mixture steep for a week or longer and then strain out the blossoms. I decided to use some of this mixture to make jelly this year. The color of the vinegar is a light pink color. The cooking process changed it somewhat and it came out a light honey color. Very pretty. By using vinegar as the base the jelly has a nice combination of tartness with the sweet. I could see using it on toast or as a glaze for meats. May have to pick up some lamb to try it out. Since I had just made violet jelly I pretty much used the same recipe. I assume this will also work for other edible flower vinegars. Hoping to do this with roses later in the year. Here is the recipe.
Lilac Jelly
3 1/2 cups lilac vinegar
1/2 c. lemon juice
1 package powdered pectin
5 c. sugar
Wash and prep jars and get water bath heating up. Place violet vinegar in pan and add lemon juice and pectin. Bring mixture to a rolling boil over high heat. Add sugar and return to the boil. Stir often. Once mixture gets to a full rolling boil, boil 1 minute. Remove jelly from heat and skim off any foam. Ladle hot liquid into jars leaving 1/4 inch headspace. Wipe rims and adjust lids. Process in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes for 4 oz. and 8 oz. jars. Remove jars to cooling rack and check seals once they have cooled down. Yield: about 7 half pint jars or 13-14 (4 oz.) jars.
Violet Jelly
Violet Jelly
I have made a lot of jams and jellies over the years. I like them but sometimes find them too sweet for my taste. I was planning on just making infused vinegar from some of my violets this year when I decided to use the vinegar as a base for the jelly. It worked out great. The end product had a sweet taste of violets but the vinegar added a tartness I really liked. It also came out a stunning pink color. Normally when you make violet jelly you boil water and pour it over the violet blossoms, making a sort of violet tea. Then you go ahead and make the jelly. By harvesting blossoms and putting them in a jar with vinegar you can make the jelly pretty much anytime you like. Also, if you don’t have a lot of blossoms at once you can harvest a few at a time over a longer period of time. The violets in vinegar will keep. I like to have equal parts flowers and vinegar for a nice strong floral flavor, but you can get by with fewer blossoms if you need.
Start with a clean jar and put your violets in it. Pour vinegar over to cover. White vinegar or white wine vinegar can be used. Heck you could probably use red wine vinegar, too. Cider vinegar might affect the color. You can continue to add flowers to the jar as you pick them. I picked 4 cups of violets and put them in a quart mason jar. I added vinegar to fill the jar, closed it up and let the flavors blend for a week. I could have let it sit longer if I was too busy to get to it. If you are in a hurry and want to make the jelly right away just heat up the vinegar and steep the flowers.
After a week, I strained it out then poured the mixture through a coffee filter to get it really clear. I ended up with 3 1/2 cups of violet “vinegar” to use for my violet jelly. I had a basic idea of how much sugar I would need so I went from there. It worked out great and jelled perfectly.
Enough chat- here is the recipe.
Violet Jelly
3 1/2 cups violet vinegar*
1/2 c. lemon juice
1 package powdered pectin
5 c. sugar
Wash and prep jars and get water bath heating up. Place violet vinegar in pan and add lemon juice and pectin. Bring mixture to a rolling boil over high heat. Add sugar and return to the boil. Stir often. Once mixture gets to a full rolling boil, boil 1 minute. Remove jelly from heat and skim off any foam. Ladle hot liquid into jars leaving 1/4 inch headspace. Wipe rims and adjust lids. Process in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes for 4 oz. and 8 oz. jars. Remove jars to cooling rack and check seals once they have cooled down. Yield: about 7 half pint jars or 13-14 (4 oz.) jars.
*For 3 1/2 cups of violet vinegar you will need 3-4 cups of blossoms and 3 1/2 cups of vinegar.
Candied Violets
Candied Violets
I love to make candied violets. It’s an easy way to enjoy these delicate flowers throughout the year. I recently posted a lemon cake decorated with candied violets. Several people asked me how to make them so I thought I would share the directions. I like to use them to decorate baked goods. Lovely on a cake they also add a sweet touch to cupcakes.
Candied Violets
Powdered egg whites (see note)
Water
Superfine sugar (see note)
Fresh violet flowers, rinsed and drained on paper toweling- Not African violets
Following package directions reconstitute egg whites to the equivalent of one or two egg whites. You can dilute them a little to make them easier to brush on. Place sugar in a shallow bowl. With a food-grade fine brush coat a violet with the egg white and press into the sugar. Place on wax paper and repeat with remaining flowers. Allow to dry for about a week. Store in a container with a tight fitting lid in a cool place. I like to store them in the freezer.
Superfine sugar, egg whites and violets
Violet brushed with egg white
Dip in superfine sugar
Let violets dry about a week before storing
Note: While some people use raw egg whites in these it is a better idea to use powdered egg whites which will have been pasteurized and therefore not a risk for salmonella.
Note: You can use regular granulated sugar if you do not have superfine or you can pulse granulated sugar in a processor a few times to make superfine sugar. Don’t over process or you will end up with powdered sugar.
