There is a huge increase in homeschooling and at-home education, and parents having to lesson plan and get creative in entertaining and educating their kids.
Our resident florist, Jenna, shares a fun and educational (and delicious!) activity she recently worked on with her kids.
She wanted a fun project they could work on together and part of the at-home school curriculum. Her eldest has "creative time" as part of their curriculum, so Jenna has been coming up with new and creative projects and this one was Dandelion Jelly!
Perfect timing, as there are tons of dandelions budding right now, and her kid loves picking flowers, so collecting dandelion heads was a great activity that also included outside time.
As our in-house florist, Jenna is talented in so many facets, and she loves baking and creating in the kitchen - our whole team benefits from that! In addition to creative time, outside time and fun, she wants to encourage and teach all of her kids' kitchen skills and home economics.
What's involved in Dandelion Jelly?
Step 1: Pick a bunch of dandelions, pick the heads off and de-petal (no green bits allowed!)
Step 2: Steep the petals for 24 hours.
Step 3: Squeeze out as much of the liquid as you can into the pot of steeped liquid.
Step 4: Follow the pectin package steps for making jelly/jam: add the pectin and some lemon juice.
Step 5: Bring mixture to a boil, then add sugar (as indicated on package), boil and stir the entire time.
Step 6: Once it's at the gel stage, it's time to sterilize the jars!
Step 7: Once the jars are sterilized, fill the jars and cap, then take the water bath canning pot, put in filled jars and boil for 10 mins to seal the jars.
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Step 8: Remove all cans from canner, let stand for 24 hours to full cool and set.
All done! Enjoy and pass on extras to friends and family.
Final verdict: It?s a jelly that tastes more like honey, with a slight hint of fresh cut grass. A couple days later the whole family taste tested, and the jelly was a huge success, and apparently that?s from 4 rather picky eaters. Tastes like honey with a slight tang.
Try out the Dandelion Jelly and send us photos and reviews of your creations.