Folks, I’m here to deliver some shocking news: You’ve been looking at dandelions all wrong. Dandelions aren’t weeds, they are dinner and dessert. And you’re going to know I’m telling the truth after you try my delicious dandelion jelly recipe, make yourself some dandelion salad, and eat some dandelion roots.
Yes, the entire dandelion is edible, including the roots. And, it’s very very healthy. According to Medical News Today, the taraxacum officinale, otherwise known as the common dandelion, contains betacarotene, and other anti-oxidants, and the flower itself contains other flavanoids and polyphenols.
‘Dandelions even contain compounds that may help with regulating blood sugar and reducing cholesterol. Dandelion jelly also tastes amazing. Dandelions even contain compounds that may help with regulating blood sugar and reducing cholesterol.
Dandelion jelly also tastes amazing. I have read descriptions saying it tastes like sunshine mixed with honey, and it’s true. It’s a very unique taste and I highly recommend you experience it at least once!
Before everyone got addicted to having emerald-green lawns that look like a golf course, gardeners used to plant dandelions and pull up grass. Now it’s the reverse.
Of course you’re going to want to plant a survival garden, but we should also learn to take advantage of what’s growing all around us. If you’re lucky enough to have dandelions growing on your property, then you have access to free salad greens, and homemade dandelion jelly too.
In a pre-SHTF world, this is important because we should get in the habit of saving money whenever we can, and teaching our kids to safely forage is a wonderful way for them to learn to be more self-sufficient and to connect with nature and get away from those screens for a while.
In a post-SHTF world, food is going to become very precious. We will all need to learn to be gardeners, and foragers, to supplement our diets, if we want to survive. Dandelions grow just about everywhere, with no effort whatsoever from humans. Given all the work we’ll have to put in gardening, weeding, caring for livestock, etc., to survive in a grid-down world, a plant like a dandelion would be an absolute blessing.
Dandelion Picking Tips
Why the heck would you need tips on picking dandelions? It’s not hard, right? It’s not like the dandelions fight back. (Although that would make a fun movie.)
Well, there are a few considerations you need to keep in mind. Number one, make sure that what you are picking is really a dandelion, and if it’s growing in with any other vegetation, carefully separate out the leaves from whatever is growing around it, because the other plants and flowers can be toxic.
Number two, make sure that what you’re picking is actually a dandelion. Again, some flowers are toxic or just bitter and taste terrible. Make sure that the flowers, and the leaves, look like the picture below.
Number two, don’t pick dandelions that are growing right next to the roadway, because they will have been exposed to, and absorbed, all of the nasty chemicals in car exhaust, and also asphalt.
And number three, don’t pick dandelions that are growing in an area where dogs are walked, because you will risk being exposed to germs from dog doo and dog pee.
Oh, and number four, in case of zombie apocalypse…don’t pick dandelions in areas where zombies are stumbling around. Zombies are all oozy and nasty. Nobody wants dandelion jelly tainted with zombie ooze, because, does the boiling water actually kill the zombie virus? Studies remain inconclusive.
Now that we’ve got that out of the way, it’s time to start picking so we can get going with that dandelion jelly recipe!
Ingredients:
- 4 cups of dandelion petals
- 4 cups of white sugar
- Two drops of yellow food coloring
- 1 packet of powdered pectin
- Two tablespoons lemon juice
Equipment:
- Six half-pint canning jars with no shoulders, suitable for putting in the freezer
- Clean lids and rings
- A one quart mason jar
- A large pot
FOOD SAFETY NOTE: This a freezer jelly recipe. That is because recently, some agricultural extensions have questioned whether dandelion jelly can be safely water-bath canned. I always, always err on the side of caution when it comes to canning, so I do not store my dandelion jelly in the pantry; I put a couple jars in the fridge and the rest in the freezer. It’s good for up to a few weeks in the fridge and up to a year in the freezer.
You’re going to need to pick plenty of flowers to get enough for your recipe. We actually picked most of the dandelions in my yard to make this recent batch. We were running out of dandelions by the time we were done.
After you pick the dandelion blossoms, you’re going to want to brew a dandelion tea with them. Get started on this right away, without waiting, because the flowers will start to close and wilt pretty quickly.
To start with, you need to make a dandelion tea and to do that, we need the dandelion petals, and only the petals.
First, rinse off your dandelion blossoms to get rid of any dirt or bugs.
Next, you’re going to want to pick the yellow petals off of the dandelions. The green parts of the dandelion will make the jelly bitter, so you have to pick them off completely, which, yes, is a little tedious. It took me and my daughter a little more than an hour to do it, but she loved doing it. I find that kids love to be involved in hands-on projects.
Let’s Get Cooking!
1.) Once you have about four cups of dandelion petals, dump them into a clean pot, with four and a half cups of water, and heat the water until it has reached a roiling boil. Then let it boil for about five minutes.
2.) Remove the pot from the heat and dump the entire mixture into a mason jar, cover it with a cloth cover to let steam escape and keep bugs out, and let it steep for 12 to 24 hours to get the full flavor.
3.) Now it’s time to strain that tea! Use a fine mesh strainer over a pot. Strain out all the water; I press on the flower petals and squeeze them to get more liquid out of them. You should have close to four cups of dandelion tea.
4.) Process your canning jars, and make sure they are warm when you add the dandelion tea. Adding boiling liquid to a canning jar that’s cold can potentially make the canning jar crack.
5.) Next step is to put the pot full of dandelion tea on the stove. Add in the lemon juice and pectin, and the yellow food coloring, and bring it to a boil.
6.) Add in the four cups of sugar.
7.) The food coloring isn’t strictly necessary but it brings a nice sunny color to the dandelion jelly.
I know that is a large amount of sugar but the sugar and the pectin interact together, and if you don’t put in enough sugar, the jelly won’t set.
Stir constantly until the sugar is dissolved.
8.) Pour the liquid into your processed jars, put the lids on, and let them sit for 24 hours.
9.) And finally…enjoy! Dandelion jelly is delicious on PB&J sandwiches, toast, waffles, or even as an ice cream topping.
Or maybe I’m weird.
Ok, based on feedback I have received, there’s no ‘maybe’ about it, but if you like fruit topping on ice cream, it’s deelish. Anyway – I hope you love this dandelion jelly recipe as much as I do!
