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    Home » Recipes

    Make Lilac Jelly Straight from Your Garden

    May 17, 2019 by Patti Estep 11 Comments

    Jump to Recipe

    Learn how to make lilac jelly from the blooms growing in your garden. A beautiful end product to enjoy and gift to others.

    Lilac jelly in weck jars

    There's something wonderful about the smell of an old fashioned lilac shrub. Growing up we had them blooming all over the place. I'm talking about Syringa vulgaris sometimes referred to as French Lilac.

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    Lilac shrub Ludwig Spaeth

    Unfortunately, they don't last long so I decided to harness some of their beauty and scent to make a sweet jelly. The shrub shown above is S. vulgaris 'Ludwig Spaeth.' It's a sweet smelling lilac with pretty mid to dark purple flowers.

    Did you even know that lilacs are edible? I wrote a post a while back about entertaining with edible flowers. Their natural beauty makes such a great statement.

    Making Lilac Jelly

    Lilac flowers in jar

    I was hoping this darker lilac would make a pretty colored jelly. The really old fashioned light lavender colored lilacs smell wonderful, just like this one but they don't have much color.

    Tip: Do your best to only use the flowers. They are sticky and it takes some time to remove them from the stems, but this will help with the color and the taste.

    Lilac flowers in boiling water

    Look how adding boiling water to create an infusion immediately changes the color of the flowers to a bluer tone.

    Lilac blossoms and water in mason jar

    One day later and all the color is just about gone, leaving a pretty red-violet hued infusion for the jelly.

    freshly poured jelly into jars

    I used liquid pectin to make this jelly. However, though I did sterilize the jars (dishwasher), I did not preserve the jelly in a canning bath process.

    This means they will have a shelf life of a few weeks to a month in the refrigerator. Perfect for small batches and these cute little Weck Jars. I was able to fill 8 of these jars which hold about 4-5 oz. with the recipe below.

    Small jar of lilac jelly

    The flavor is sweet and has a very delicate lilac scent. Nothing like rose or lavender which are much stronger, but more of a light pretty fragrance.

    I love the way they look and can't wait to give them out to family and friends.

    Patti signature

    P.S.  Learn more about experimenting with different Floral and Herbal Infusions and other similar ideas include making Beautyberry Jelly or making your own Floral Water.

    Click Here to Save to Pinterest!

    Spring lilac jelly in jars
    Lilac jelly in weck jars

    Lilac Jelly Recipe

    Patti Estep
    Learn how to make lilac jelly from the blooms growing in your garden. A beautiful end product to enjoy and gift to others.
    4.46 from 48 votes
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe
    Prep Time 1 d
    Cook Time 15 mins
    Additional Time 5 mins
    Total Time 1 d 20 mins
    Course Recipes
    Cuisine American
    Servings 32 Makes 8 - 4 oz jars
    Calories 73 kcal

    Equipment

    • Weck 976 Mini Mold Jar - Set of 12
    • Sure Jell Certo Premium Liquid Fruit Pectin - 6 fl oz

    Ingredients
      

    • 2 cups of lilac infusion jar of boiled water over clean flowers for 24 hrs
    • 3 cups of sugar
    • 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
    • 1 3 oz packet of sure jell liquid

    Instructions
     

    • Combine lilac infusion, sugar and lemon juice in a large pot.
    • Bring to a rolling boil and stir until all the sugar has dissolved.
    • Continue to boil for 1 minute.
    • Add in sure jell or pectin liquid and bring back to a rolling boil.
    • Let boil for 2 minutes.
    • Remove and skim any foam from top.
    • Ladle into sterilized jars.
    • Refrigerate for up to a month.

    Nutrition

    Serving: 1oz.Calories: 73kcalCarbohydrates: 19gSugar: 19g
    Keyword lilac jelly
    Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

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    About Patti Estep

    Patti is the creator of Hearth and Vine, a home and garden blog filled with projects to inspire your creative side. She loves crafting, gardening, decorating and entertaining at her home in Pennsylvania. When she is not working on a project at home or searching for treasures at nurseries and thrift stores with her girlfriends, you’ll probably find her with family and friends, at a restaurant, or home party enjoying new and different food adventures.

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Dulcinea

      May 13, 2022 at 1:30 pm

      Made this recipe for the first time and now I am in love! Thank you for sharing with us. They can be jarred up and put through a waterbath for 10 minutes. 😋

      Reply
      • Patti Estep

        May 13, 2022 at 1:57 pm

        So glad to hear it, Dulcinea. Thanks for sharing the water bath information too.

        Reply
    2. Susan

      June 02, 2021 at 11:38 pm

      I made this and it turned out so amazingly good. I am hooked now and will be making this every year. Thank you for a great recipe,

      Reply
      • Patti Estep

        June 03, 2021 at 6:21 am

        That's wonderful to hear Susan. Thanks for sharing your results here!

        Reply
    3. Susan

      June 01, 2021 at 7:50 pm

      Do these go into the jars hot hot and the tops tightened and go straight into the fridge, or left out to cool down then put in the fridge. I just made this for the first time. Excited to try it.

      Reply
      • Patti Estep

        June 02, 2021 at 7:05 am

        Susan, I do let them cool down some before refrigeration. 

        Reply
    4. Debra Boula

      June 01, 2020 at 2:24 pm

      Can I process theses in a canner and Not have to refrigerate until open

      Reply
      • Patti Estep

        June 01, 2020 at 2:37 pm

        Debra, I have not done it but I'm sure you could easily can the jelly. Here's a link from the makers of Sure Jell that might help.https://www.myfoodandfamily.com/recipe/051957/surejell-strawberry-jam 

        Reply
    5. Mary Snook

      May 18, 2019 at 6:36 pm

      I would really like to try this, lilacs are just beginning to open.

      Approximately how many flowers are needed to do this? 1 cup, 2 cups?

      Thank you.

      Reply
      • Patti Estep

        May 19, 2019 at 6:43 am

        Mary I used a couple of large blossoms which ended up being about 2 full cups after removing the flowers but you could use more if you like.

        Reply
    6. Carole West

      May 17, 2019 at 9:48 am

      Both of my grandmothers had lilac bushes and we looked forward to bringing home bouquets every year. They were always present around Mother's day which was neat. Now I never thought about using those blooms for jelly. Neat idea and I agree perfect gift idea too.

      Reply

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