"No bees, no honey! No work, no money!"
To me dandellion is the prophet of a ridge between spring and summer. When they are in full blossom. When dandellion down comes out, spring is gone - welcome summer. Right at this moment the meadows are still yellow, so you can still make it for the honey if you're quick enough. I still have some saved from last season and the fresh one has just arrived!All the credit for this fantastic dainty goes to my Mom! I'm amazed how much patience she has to try out so many new recipes from wild grown herbs and flowers. In our family she is the expert of pickling and marinating fruit and vegetables! This year she took dandellion honey to a whole new level - upgrading the taste with cherry leaves! And another batch was made with black current leaves - can't wait to try that this weekend!
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| My busy Bee |
There's a lot to pick! The recipe requires 500 blossoms. And you can't go out and pick them in the evening, when the flowers are closed for the night. In this context, it is good that the days are not too hot now. We always do dandellion (and berry, and mushroom, and wild herb) picking with our loyal companions. Who become competition when picking berries - girls love to eat them off the stems.
Ingredients:
* 500 dandellion blossoms
* 2 lemons
* 20 cherry leaves
* 6 cups water
* 1,6 kg confectionary sugar
Rinse dandellions with cold water, drain and dry a bit with paper towels. Toss with cherry leaves and grated lemon, zest included. Pour over water and boil over low heat for 10-15 minutes. Let it cool and rest for 24 hours.
Strain using a fine mesh sieve, add confectionary sugar and boil for an hour, occasionally stirring. Et voila! Pour into jars and store in a cool place. I store mine in the fridge. It lasts untill the new season. Please make sure the jars are properly prepared and sealed.
Use:
- like you would regular honey
- as a topping for pancakes/porridge
- drink it mixed with tea
- drink with hot or cold water
- pour over oatmeal, mixed with chopped nuts and berries for breakfast
- add to breakfast fruit/vegetable smoothies
- add to hot brandy with a slice of lemon on cold winter evenings
Dandellion honey has been used for a very long time now as a home remedy for colds, cough and sore throat.
P.S. Thank you Mom, for my share :)!
Bon appetit!
