Dandelion Honey (which just so happens to be vegan!)

This tastes just like the real thing and is vegan friendly too!

So if you love honey, making things from what you've foraged, and maybe gifting some to friends and family, this is for you! Now that the dandelion season is almost over, and other flowers (and trees) have started blooming, the bees have had their initial food from waking up and we can share what's left over.

And what's more, if you pour the hot, finished product into hot, sterilized jars, it will last for a year or more in the fridge!

This quantity will make two to three standard jars (depending on how long you heat it for, and hence evaporation), or you can reduce the ingredients to a third of the quantity to make just a single jar - I'll put those into the notes at the bottom to save you from doing unnecessary maths, and concentrate on the more important part, i.e. making it!

Ingredients

• 150g dandelion heads (around 175 cut off just beneath the flower head)
• 1/4 tsp citric acid, OR 1/2 an (unwaxed) lemon, OR 2 tbsp lemon juice (I prefer the citric acid, so as to keep the flavour more pure)
• 525 ml/g water
• Approximately 450g organic or golden caster sugar (see method, I ended up using 415g as it correlates to the amount of liquid you have)

Method

 

1. Collect the dandelion heads, giving them a shake if you see any bugs in them, snipping off right at the top of the stem, and then blowing them if there are any visible bugs left.

 

2. Rinse them in a colander or seive, then put into a very large pot (e.g. a stock pot - I'll tell you why later!), and add the water (525g) and citric acid / lemon. Squash down so the dandelion heads are covered. I like to leave for a bit then fish out any remaining bugs I see with a teaspoon and release them, but hopefully the majority have already left.

 

3. Bring to the boil, and simmer with a lid on for 15 minutes.

 

4. Leave to cool and infuse overnight.

 

5. Strain the liquid into a jug or pan (or into a jug than pouring it back into your large pan!), measuring the weight of it.

 

6. Sterilise your jar/s in an oven at 120C / gas mark 1 for 20 minutes whilst doing the next part, so they are nice and hot, ready to put your 'honey' into.

 

7. You'll need a sugar thermometer or food probe etc. for this bit - I've mucked it up in the past by under/over-boiling it, and you need to get it to at least 106C up to 112C (223F to 235F). Also, you need to keep an eye on it, as once it passes boiling point, it will bubble up and overflow like milk does. I used a large pan which was only filled up to about a quarter full, and had to keep turning it up and down as it was bubbling over, and really hard to get it to go over 103C, so get your absolute biggest pan out! Bring to the boil, and keep going until your thermometer his 106C (and just to warn you, for me, it took an absolute age to get from 103C to 106C!).

 

8. Once you've hit the sweet spot (sorry!), pour into your hot sterilized jars, get the lids on using oven gloves or whatever you have to hand to avoid burns, leave to cool, and then store in the fridge. Taste the next day, and you'll be amazed by the flavour!

 

Notes

For a small quantity you'll need:

• 50g dandelion heads (around 50-60 cut off just beneath the flower head)
• a small pinch of citric acid, OR 1 thick slice of an (unwaxed) lemon, OR 2 tsp lemon juice (I prefer the citric acid, so as to keep the flavour more pure)
• 175 ml/g water
• Approximately 150g organic or golden caster sugar (see method)