How to make violet jelly

After a few folks told me they made jelly with wild violets-I had to give it a try.

Gathering violets to make jelly

So the other evening, me and this character headed for Granny’s Violet Vale. In only took us a few minutes to pick 2 cups of violet blooms-that’s how much it takes to make jelly.

What kind of violets do you make jelly from

Rinse off the blooms-then place them in a glass bowl-and pour 2 cups of boiling water over them. I looked at several recipes-they all varied about how long to steep the blooms. I went for the longest time. I covered the bowl with a plate and let it sit on the counter until the following day-when I planned to make jelly.

Violet Juice

But as often happens in life-something came up. So I drained the blooms (discarding them) and put the purplish liquid into the fridge until today.

How to make violet juice

To make violet jelly you need:

  • 2 cups of violet flower juice
  • juice of 1 lemon
  • a box of pectin
  • 4 cups of sugar
  • jelly jars, lids, and rings (you need to sterilize all-and keep the jars hot-I used a pot of simmering water)

Science project with violets

~first-pour the violet juice, pectin, and lemon juice into a fairly large sauce pan (when you mix the lemon juice with the purple violet juice-it immediately turns pink-might make a neat science project for school)

~heat the mixture until it boils-then add 4 cups of sugar

~while stirring-bring the mixture back to a hard boil-one that doesn’t stop even though you’re stirring it

~boil for one minute

~ladle hot jelly into hot jars

~attach lids and rings

~turn jars upside down for 5 minutes-then turn right side up-the jars will seal as they cool-you can hear the ‘pop’ of each jar sealing

~if you feel more comfortable using a hot water bath to seal the jelly-place the jars in a hot water bath for 10 minutes

Violet Jelly

The recipe above made 4 small jars of violet jelly.

I was pleasantly surprised by the taste. I didn’t think the the jelly would have much of a flavor other than being sweet. I was wrong, violet jelly does have a distinct flavor. I’ve been thinking of how to describe the taste-what have I come up with? Not much. It’s kind of a herbal sweet taste-sorta like lavender but not quite. In the end I decided it must taste exactly like violet jelly-which makes sense don’t you think?

Tipper

 

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32 Comments

  1. Maggie-I didnt pack the blooms tightly-but I did push them down slightly. If you try the violet jelly I sure hope you like it : ) Thank you for the great comments!!

  2. you can do this with kudzu blossoms too. Nice to have something good to do with kudzu (makes nice baskets too) The kudzu jelly ends up tasting like a very light grape jelly.

  3. I love your posts, but they make me so homesick for Appalachia! Thank you so much!
    PS- could you post something about Melungeons?

  4. This is something I used to make as a child! I haven’t though about this in YEARS! YUM!!!!!

  5. That is very interesting, Tipper. I’ve never heard of violet jelly anywhere but here. But I will be on the lookout for a violet patch from now on.

  6. Wow, what a neat thing to do. Who’d of thought you could make jelly from flowers. Pretty color too, looks a little like crab apple jelly.
    And yes, anything goes good with peanut butter.

  7. This was such a unique idea – I never heard of violet jelly. Right now they are in abundance in my yard and I had all the ingredients so tried it…I agree with your comments on taste. It is a most beautiful color and tastes good. Doubt it will take the place of strawberry in this house but it is good. Thanks for posting the idea.

  8. I wonder if it can be made from other flowers as well. It makes me think of my Grandmas corn cob jelly. (I will have to send you that one) Thanks for another interesting post.

  9. I loved this, Tipper. I enjoyed learning about violet jelly. Bring me a taste when you come over if there is any left.
    Do you think it is good on a peanut butter sandwich?

  10. Wonderful pictures of the process of violet jelly making….
    Our violets are about gone for the year….
    I would have loved to make violet jelly..not enough time this year..I have enjoyed the posts about violets and their uses…
    I wonder if the different color of violets (yellow or white for instance) would issue a different
    flavor of jelly…

  11. im so glad that you were able to make the jam.. isnt it gorgeous? i just love how it looked in the jars. and as you said the taste is very delicate… 🙂
    thanks so much for sharing your experience..
    big ladybug hugs
    lynn

  12. yet another thing i have never heard of, keep them coming. anything that sweet and pretty has to be good. the song is approriate today. thanks for sharing

  13. I knew they were edible, but never knew anyone that would actually try to eat them and certainly didn’t know you could make jelly from them. The color of the water from steeping is gorgeous!! So…was it good??? I might have to try this…

  14. Now this really sounds interesting, and the end result if very pretty. I like your description of the taste, ha … I may have to give this a try.

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