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Try making this easy lilac flower jelly recipe and enjoy this unique floral treat all year long.
Flower jellies are so much fun to make! Each spring I enjoy making large batches of dandelion jelly, wild violet jelly, peony jelly, and of course lilac jelly too.
Did you know lilac flowers are edible?
Yes really! They make a yummy jelly you just have to try.
If you’re wondering what lilac jelly tastes like, it has a mildly floral taste that definitely isn’t overbearing. It’s lovely to enjoy on toast, biscuits, or even with crackers and cheese.
How To Make Lilac Jelly
Prepare The Flowers
The first thing you’ll need to do of course is to go and gather your lilac flowers.
You can use any color of lilacs, the flavor should be the same but the color of the finished jelly will be a little different if you use light or dark purple, or even white lilac flowers.
Make sure to gather your flowers in a clean area that hasn’t been sprayed with any nasty chemicals.
After you’ve cut some nice bows of lilac flowers, you need to pull the petals off to separate the green parts of the flowers.
The green leaves and stems can make your jelly very bitter so trust me just pull off the petals!
They are actually really easy to separate so this step goes pretty fast.
Make Lilac Tea
Once you have 2 cups of packed flower petals it’s time to make the lilac tea. This is sometimes also called lilac infused water.
Pour the flower petals into a quart sized canning jar, then pour about 4 cups of boiling water over them. You’ll want the water to come up to the neck of the jar.
Cover the jar and let it sit until it cools down. Then place it in the fridge overnight to continue steeping.
The next day when you’re ready, strain the flowers well and squeeze out as much liquid as possible.
Measure out 3 1/2 to 4 cups of liquid and pour it into a large pot. If you are short on lilac tea, you can use water to make up the difference.
Add the 1/4 cup of lemon juice and 1 pouch of powdered pectin and bring the mixture to a boil.
When it starts to boil add in the 4 cups of sugar and stir it well and return to a boil.
Allow the mixture to boil for 1 to 2 minutes and remove from the heat.
Pour the jelly into hot canning jars, leaving 1/4 inch of headspace.
Run a spatula around the inside edge to remove any air bubbles. Then wipe the edges of the jars clean, and place on the lids and rings finger tight.
Place the jars into a water bath canner and process for 10 minutes or according to your altitude.
Remove the jars from the canner and place them on a towel in a draft-free place. Let them sit undisturbed for 24 hours to let the seal harden.
Any jars that haven’t sealed after 24 hours need to be reprocessed or refrigerated.
This is definitely a wonderful flower jelly you must try when your lilac bushes are flowering!
More Ways To Use Lilacs
Lilac Jelly
Try making this easy lilac flower jelly recipe and enjoy this unique floral treat all year long!
Ingredients
- 2 cups of packed lilac blossoms, leaves and stems removed.
- 3-4 cups of boiling water
- 1/4 cup lemon juice
- 4 cups of sugar
- 1 pouch powdered pectin
Instructions
- Cut the lilac flowers from your tree, then remove the flower petals until you have 2 cups of firmly packed blossoms.
- Add the blossoms to a quart-sized canning jar and cover to the jar neck with boiling water. Cover the jar and let it cool, then place in the fridge overnight to steep.
- The next day strain the flowers, pressing or squeezing to remove as much liquid as possible. You should have 3 1/2 to 4 cups of liquid, make up the difference with water.
- Pour the lilac tea into a large pot, add the lemon juice and pectin and bring it to a boil.
- When it’s boiling add the sugar, stirring until it has dissolved and return the mixture to a full boil for 1-2 minutes.
- Remove from heat, skim off any foam and ladle into jars.
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Kim Mills is a homeschooling mom of 6 and lives on an urban homestead in Ontario, Canada. Blogging at Homestead Acres she enjoys sharing tips to help you save money, grow and preserve your own food.
Amanda Clark
Tuesday 8th of June 2021
So I’ve reboiled my jelly and hopefully this worked- however it has taken away the gorgeous pink colour and now is a little peachy colour. Why is that? Thanks
Kim
Thursday 17th of June 2021
Hi Amanda, The color change was likely just from cooking it longer. If you want to adjust the color you can use some food coloring. I just saw your last comment and it looks like you waited about 3 days for the jelly to set and then recooked it? Jelly can set up firm after about 24 hours but it's also common for it to take a week or sometimes a few weeks to set, it depends a lot on the pectin. So I normally wait a few weeks before recooking the jelly.
Amanda Clark
Saturday 5th of June 2021
Hello,
I made your recipe yesterday afternoon and followed measurements exactly. It still hasn’t jelled the next morning. What have I don’t wrong :(
Kim
Thursday 17th of June 2021
Hi Amanda, Often jelly will set in about 24 hours after making it but sometimes it can take a week or longer. If it doesn't firm up after a few weeks you can try one of these ways of fixing runny jelly or use it as syrup. https://www.homestead-acres.com/how-to-fix-jam-or-jelly-that-didnt-set/
Becky
Thursday 27th of May 2021
I’m wondering on when will be the best to harvest the flowers? Is there a special time when they are perfect for jelly making? Thanks.
Kim
Friday 28th of May 2021
You can pick the flowers anytime from when they first open right up until just before they start falling off the bush. I like to start gathering some each day once they bloom so I can make a few batches a day. But this year we had a cold front come through 2 days after the flowers opened. The cold weather and strong winds started making the flower fall off sooner than normal. We rushed to pick a few baskets and the jelly still came out great.
Ann
Monday 24th of May 2021
I followed the directions exactly for a double batch and it never gelled. I was left with a sticky mess that I needed to redo and a waste of lids that can not be re-used. As a microbiologist and long-time canner I doubt I made an error.
Kim
Friday 28th of May 2021
Ann, you should never try to double a jelly or jam recipe. It almost never works jams and jellies need to be cooked in small batches.
Adina
Tuesday 18th of May 2021
Hi Kim,
I made the lilac jelly tonight and I just realised we might have used different measurements for pectin. I’m in England and a box of pectin has six pouches and all together weigh 48 grams. How much does your pouch of dry pectin weigh in Canada? I was hyperventilating a minute ago, but if the pectin is off I guess I’ll end up with a nice syrup?! The flavour is wonderful! Thank you, Adina
Kim
Friday 28th of May 2021
Hi Adina, I just checked and the boxes of powdered pectin sold here are 57 grams. That's a little different but hopefully, it set ok for you!