When the Dandelions are prolific it is time to make some syrup. You can tell how much my husband loves the syrup when he asks if it's time to pick the flowers. ♥
I also needed to use two more bags of frozen Raspberries from last season. Since it would rain all day, it seemed like the perfect time to do some canning.
I rinsed the flower buds and boiled a pan of water. I placed the flowers in the jar and covered them slowly with hot water. I let them steep all day the day before and then drained them. I kept it in the refrigerator until the next day when I made the syrup.
You can see that the flowers made a great tea to make the syrup with.
2 cups dandelion buds
dandelion tea (steeped for up to 24 hours)
1 ½ cups sugar
1Tbsp. bottled lemon juice
Pour your dandelion tea through cheesecloth or two layers of paper towels. This removes any debris and the dark green foam from the tea.
Stir the sugar and lemon juice into the tea and bring it to a boil over medium heat. Simmer uncovered until a thin syrup forms, about 45 minutes.
Let it cool until the syrup thickens slightly and store in the refrigerator for up to a month.
I decided to water-bath can my syrup since I was also doing the raspberries at the same time.
I am loving the beautiful amber color of the syrup. If you have never had any it tastes just like honey.
3 lbs raspberries
2 cups water
2 3/4 cups sugar
1/2 cup light corn syrup
2 Tbsp. bottled lemon juice
Simmer the berries over medium-low heat cooking uncovered for 20 minutes. Stir occasionally and do not let them boil.
Remove from the heat and line a fine mesh strainer with cheesecloth. Place the strainer on a bowl and pour the berries onto the cheesecloth. Let them drain slowly for at least 2 hours to get as much liquid as possible. You should get about 4 cups of juice. (Do not squeeze the pulp to release more juice, just discard it).
Combine the drained juice, sugar, corn syrup, and lemon juice in a large kettle. Bring the mixture to a full rolling boil over medium-high heat. Boil for one minute.
Ladle the hot syrup into hot jars leaving 1/2" headspace. Wipe the jar rims well, place on the lids, and finger-tighten the rings. Water-bath can the pint jars for 10 minutes. Remove from the canner and let cool for 24 hours before moving them.
I already know this syrup's delicious and love using it on top of vanilla ice cream and homemade waffles for breakfast. It can also be used for creating certain cocktails but I have yet to do so.
This will be a nice addition to the pantry shelves to enjoy whenever the mood strikes.
Of course, there was enough left over to put a jar into the refrigerator. My husband is now using a little in his coffee every morning. I may have to have him continue picking dandelions if he uses the syrup every day. What do you think?
Until next time, this is Sunscape
Sun. Scape. Ing Your Day
