Finally – spring is fast approaching.
The mountains still have a light dusting of snow, but our village is already surrounded by the lush green of the meadows and the ladies of Fiss are busy preparing their gardens for sowing. Dandelions and daisies are the first spring flowers in our garden and I am already looking forward to the coming weeks of gathering flowers and spring herbs. For right now, they are bursting with vigour and energy.
Dandelion jelly has become a staple in our house. I love the slightly lemony scent, especially in salad dressing, in summer smoothies, but also on buttered bread – it is a delicious alternative to honey or jam.
When the moon is waxing and the sun is shining, I pick the flowers between 11:00 and 14:00, lay them out in the kitchen so that the little creepy crawlies can still escape, and then get on with making the jelly quickly.
Ingredients:
350 heads of dandelion flowers
4–5 sliced organic lemons
2 kg sugar
1.5 litres of water
Method:
Place the dandelion heads in a large saucepan, add the thinly sliced lemons and the water, and boil for about 10 minutes.
Then cover the pan and let the infusion stand for 24 hours.
On the next day, strain the dandelion water through a tea towel.
Stir 2 kg of sugar into the infusion and simmer on a low heat for about 1.5 hours.
Keep an eye on it and stir from time to time. Caution: the longer the infusion boils, the firmer the jelly will be.
Rinse the prepared jars in hot water and pour the jelly into the jars.
Have fun making and eating this.
