Honeysuckle Jelly

I have to give mad props to my husband. Today I got it in my head that I was going to make Honeysuckle Jelly. Something that few have actually heard of and even fewer have actually made. I come from a very sheltered, organized, perfect "city life" as they call it here on the farm and I had never tasted honeysuckle until I married the farmer. It tastes, unlike anything I've ever had before so it's hard to describe. You just take the bottom of the flower off, pull out the stamen (I think it what it's called) and bam! There's the nectar!

So, today I got in my head that I was going to make this jelly that no one has ever heard of. I told the farmer and although he thought I was a little crazy, he decided to help me out. He couldn't farm today because of all the rain so he really didn't have much of a choice. So we set out on our new ranger. I grabbed my basket and we rode all over the farm getting the best looking blooms from the honeysuckle vines. The air smells strongly of honeysuckle thanks to the rain this morning and the rain coming in tonight. The Farmer was so into helping me today with my experiment that he actually got off the ranger a few times and helped me pick them. Ain't he sweet?

Enough of my babbling! 😁 Here's the recipe for Honeysuckle Jelly:

Honeysuckle Jelly A jar of honeysuckle jelly is the equivalence of Summertime in a jar. Smell and taste Summertime with this delicious recipe! Try it on toast, crackers or by itself, close your eyes and let it take you back. Ingredients

• 4 Cups Honeysuckle Blossoms

• 4 Cups Boiling Water

• 4 Cups Sugar

• 1/4 Cup Lemon Juice

• 1 Pkg Liquid Pectin

To make an infusion, prepare the flowers by removing the tiny green tip at the base of each blossom. Next, bring 4 cups of water to a boil in a large saucepan, turn the heat off, then add the honeysuckle blossoms, covering the pan after blooms are placed in water. Allow them to steep for about 45 minutes, stirring occasionally. Strain the flowers from the liquid. Measure two cups of the infusion and return it to the saucepan. Add lemon juice and sugar and turn heat to medium-high, stirring constantly. Bring the infusion to a hard boil that won’t stir down. Add the pectin and boil for two minutes. Reduce heat if necessary to avoid boiling over.