Dandelion Blossom Syrup

Spring is here! And nothing says spring in my yard more than beautiful blossoms! ... even though these guys get a bad rep I'm a big fan of the DANDELION. Both the green and the flowers are edible, The young leaves are absolutely delicious cooked in recipes and even though I've been hearing about a variety of preparations for the flowers I've never actually used them.

This spring I ventured outdoors into my backyard to pick all the gorgeous yellow bloods popping up between the grass, not only are they organic but they all looked as if they opened overnight so they should be very clean.

I snipped a bunch of blooms and then popped them in a pot in the fridge until I could figure out what to do with them... usually when I'm using a new ingredient I like to try it in the most simple preparation to really get a taste of it's flavour so dandelion blossom syrup it was!
I think this would be a really fun recipe for my husband to use with his Soda Stream. Dandelion blossom soda anyone?

Feel free to omit the citrus and store in the fridge instead of canning (consume within a reasonable amount of time). Thanks to Eat the Weeds (one of my favourite foraging website resources for the recipe below) 

Dandelion Blossom Syrup

This is a traditional recipe passed down from the old world Europeans.  I use it as a substitute for honey in any recipe that I’m trying to make wild.

1 quart dandelion flowers

1 quart (4 cups) water

4 cups sugar

½ lemon or orange (organic if possible) chopped, peel and all

Note: The citrus is optional, it will give the syrup an orangy or lemony flavor.  If you want the pure dandelion flavor, you can skip the citrus.  I make it both ways each year.

1. Put blossoms and water in a pot.

2. Bring just to a boil, turn off heat, cover, and let sit overnight.

3. The next day, strain and press liquid out of spent flowers.

4. Add sugar and sliced citrus and heat slowly, stirring now and again, for several hours or until reduced to a thick, honey-like syrup.

5. Can in half-pint or 1 pint jars.

Recipe makes 1 pint. Perfect for giving out as holiday gifts in small jars.