How to Make Dandelion Jelly that Tastes like Honey

Dandelions? Those deep rooted weeds in my yard? I can make a jelly from them? Correct. Dandelion jelly is definitely a thing. It is definitely yummy. In fact, the entire “weed” is edible. Keep reading to find out more and a simple recipe to make yourself some yard jelly.

I am not a doctor, do not have a holistic medicine degree, please use discernment when attempting to consume dandelions. Please also see my Disclosure.

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Are dandelions good for you?

Depending on your search engine, you may get conflicting advice; however, dandelions have been used for centuries in many forms of traditional medicine.

Fun fact: dandelions are not weeds; they are actually a member of the sunflower family and just like those, all parts are edible.

Dandelion greens, in particular, are a great source of vitamins A, C, and K; folate, potassium, and calcium.

Because dandelions are herbs, scientists do not pay a whole lot of attention to them and more research needs to be done but we do know some things already.

Dandelion flowers contain several antioxidants that can protect your body against free radicals and may reduce inflammation.

Furthermore, there are a few other health benefits that I encourage you to research on your own.

Does dandelion jelly taste good?

To be honest, I was quite skeptical of this one but how does the old saying go? “Don’t knock it til you try it”? Let’s apply that here. It’s actually quite tasty.

My 7 year old daughter said “Mom, it tastes like honey with citrus in it!”

She’s not wrong. It very much tastes like a honey spread. It’s great with homemade butter on toast for breakfast.

How to collect dandelions for jelly

This is an important step. So many people see the dandelion as a pesky weed in the yard and so they spray it with very harmful herbicides, weed killers, etc.

You want to find dandelions from yards that have not been sprayed.

Do not collect dandelion flowers from the roadside. Car exhaust and Lord only knows what else could be on them.

Collect just the flowers from the dandelion. No green leaves or the stem. I slip the flower head between my pointer finger and middle finger and pull gently upwards to get just the flower.

You will need two generous cups full of flower heads for this dandelion jelly recipe.

How to prepare the flowers

Now, rinse the flower heads generously, multiple times. You may find little black bugs in them that do not like the water and will come out. Rinse as many times are you see fit. Additionally, I let my flower heads sit in a bowl to soak for a few hours before continuing with the recipe.

Drain the water from the bowl with a strainer or colander and put flower heads into a quart jar. Additionally, you could use cheese cloth inside the strainer to sift out fine particles.

Next, boil 4 cups of water. Pour water in the jar to cover the flower heads. Let the jar sit for 24 hours so the flower tea can steep.

How to make the dandelion jelly

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The next day, strain the flower heads from the “tea”. I used a mesh strainer with a muslin cloth inside it to capture any thing at all (maybe even any left over bugs, HAHA!).

Pour tea into a sauce pot with one packet of pectin and stir. Bring the two to a boil then add 4 cups of sugar and return to a boil for 2 minutes. Stir very often.

Remove the mixture from the heat and pour into sterilized jelly jars with lids and rings ready to go. You may need 6-7 four ounce jelly jars.

Process for 10 minutes in a boiling water bath to seal jars. Remove from water and cover with a kitchen towel to rest for 24 hours. Put any sealed jars in the pantry after labeling name and date to store for one year. If any did not seal, go ahead and put those in the refrigerator to consume within a few weeks.

How to use dandelion jelly

Because dandelion jelly tastes so much like honey, feel free to use it *almost* exactly like you would real honey. I say “almost” because you wouldn’t want to use it to ferment things like lemon and ginger.

Dandelion jelly is an excellent drizzle over ice cream. Just slightly warm it first.

Slather some homemade butter on sourdough sandwich bread as toast and layer on dandelion jelly.

Not into sourdough (yet)? Try this easy yeast bread recipe that can also transition into hamburger or hot dog buns!

Save it for later!

Dandelion season is spring through summer. Lots of chances to make this recipe and share it with others to bring some awareness to this HERB who is not a weed! Who tastes delicious and has many health benefits. Save it for later and share it with your friends for me. Rate this recipe once you give it a go! Feel free to leave me a comment on this post too.

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