Honeysuckle Jelly
Capture the essence of summer in every bite with Honeysuckle Jelly!
This delightful jelly boasts a unique and fragrant floral aroma, thanks to the inclusion of fresh honeysuckle flowers. The simple ingredient list, featuring pectin, fresh lemon juice, and sugar, allows the delicate flavor of the honeysuckle to shine through. Each spoonful evokes the sweetness and sunshine of summer, making it a delightful addition to toast, biscuits, and more. It’s a taste of the season, preserved in a jar to be enjoyed year-round.
We love unique and delicious jellies, like this one. For another Honeysuckle recipe, be sure to check out our Honeysuckle Iced Tea recipe. For some other jelly recipes, check out our Pink Peony Jelly and our Corn Cob Jelly recipe.
Unique Jelly Recipes
Jelly is one of my favorite things to make any time of year, but I especially like to find the most unique flavors.
If you love the sweet, floral fragrance of honeysuckle flowers, you’re going to love this jelly as much as we do. It’s literally childhood in a jar.
Yes, admittedly the flavor is a little lighter and different than your typical blueberry jam but it is just so good! The soft sweet almost honey-like flavor is addicting! It’s great for spreading on toast, servings with crackers, or pouring over some ice cream.
What is Honeysuckle Jelly? This jelly is made up of actual fresh honeysuckle blossoms, fresh lemon juice, lots of sugar and pectin. While you may be tempted to reduce the sugar, don’t for this recipe. It is meant to have lots of sugar. It’s a jelly after all!
Jam Vs Jelly
- Both use whole fruit or flowers.
- A jelly contains the juice of the fruit or the juice/liquid made from the flowers.
- Jams and preserves contain pieces of the fruit or flower itself.
- Jelly is smooth, with no lumps.
- Jam has fruit pieces or chunks adding texture to the end result.
How to Make Honeysuckle Jelly
Please see the recipe for more in-depth steps.
I won’t lie, it takes a lot of those beautiful little blossoms to get a good flavor, but it’s totally worth it!
I always grab way more than I need which is like shopping bags full. This is so I can make up lots of honeysuckle infused recipes.
- Prepare honeysuckle blossoms, boil and steep for 12 hours.
- Strain the liquid, boil and add other ingredients. Cook until 220 degrees.
- Pour into canning jars, seal, flip and rest for 10 minutes.
- Cool jars upright in a dry place for 24 hours.
Handy tip: Prepare Ahead!
When you’re out foraging for flowers, grab more than you think you will need. It is always better to have more, than less. Also be sure to investigate whether any pesticides were used and avoid any bushes that were sprayed.
Tools you’ll need
These are the tools and supplies we used for this recipe. If you purchase anything using one of our links, we will make a small commission from Amazon.
What does it taste like?
I have no qualms about sticking my spoon right into that jar and taking a big old bite of that jelly straight off the spoon. The jelly is the perfect amount of sweet, with a light floral undertone in every bite.
It truly tastes like you remember when you were a child and the summer heat was beating down as you sipped the sweet nectar from the stem.
And it’s not just good on bread.
Honeysuckle Jelly Uses:
There are a lot of surprising ways to use this sweet delicate jelly.
- Sweet Treats:
- Spoon it over: Vanilla ice cream, yogurt parfaits, or even freshly cut fruit for a delightful summer dessert.
- Drizzle it on: Pancakes, waffles, or French toast for a sweet and floral twist on breakfast classics.
- Fill or top: Pastries, crepes, or even layer cakes for a subtle floral accent.
- Savory Pairings:
- Glaze: Chicken, pork, or salmon with honeysuckle jelly for a sweet and tangy glaze that elevates your main course. Substitute it in any recipe calling for a fruit glaze for a unique touch.
- Cheese and crackers: Spread cream cheese on your favorite cracker, then add a dollop of honeysuckle jelly for a sophisticated and unexpected appetizer.
- Sandwich Spreads: While classic peanut butter and jelly is always a winner, try experimenting with other savory combinations like brie and prosciutto or goat cheese and cucumber.
- Beyond the Plate:
- Cocktails: Use honeysuckle jelly to create unique and floral-infused cocktails.
- Yogurt parfaits: Spoon a layer of jelly into your yogurt parfait for a burst of flavor and sweetness.
No matter how you choose to enjoy it, honeysuckle jelly offers a delightful and versatile way to add a touch of floral sunshine to your culinary creations.
Powdered Pectin or Liquid Pectin?
This recipe specifically calls for powdered pectin. It has only been tested this way. For more information about why it’s important to follow a recipe that calls for one or the other, check out our post powdered pectin or liquid pectin?
As for brands, we prefer Sure Jell however any brand should do.
More Honeysuckle Recipes
- Honeysuckle Iced Tea (my favorite)
- Honeysuckle Simple Syrup
- Honeysuckle Infusion Water
- Honeysuckle Berry Vodka Spritzer
Have you tried making this Honeysuckle Jelly Recipe?
Are you ready to make your own Honeysuckle Jelly?
It’s a mixture between the taste of summer or the sweetness of childhood all wrapped up in a flavorful, delicious Jelly.
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Honeysuckle Jelly
Ingredients
- 7 cups yellow honeysuckle blossoms remove tiny green tip
- 6 tablespoons powdered pectin
- 4 cups boiling hot water
- ⅓ cups lemon juice
- 4 ½ cups granulated sugar
Instructions
- Gather your honeysuckle blossoms. Remove all greens and debris. Rinse in a colander.
- When removing the green tips don't remove the stamen, it will pull all that amazing flavor out.
- Bring 4 cups of water to a rolling boil.
- Once the water is at a full boil, place the honeysuckle blossoms in a tall jar or pitcher with a lid, and pour the hot boiling water over them. Allow this to sit for 12 hours (overnight).
- Using a sieve, strain the flowers from the Infusion Water.
- Heat the infusion water in a large pot on the stove until boiling. Add the powdered pectin and the lemon juice. Boil for 1 minute, stirring frequently.
- Stir in the sugar and heat continue heating on medium high stirring constantly.
- When the mixture hits 220 degrees you’re done.
- Ladle the liquid into the jars leaving about a 1/2" of head space at the top. Wipe the rim of the jar with a clean kitchen towel so there is no liquid trapped under the lid.
- Seal the jar with the lids. Flip the jars upside down for about 10 minutes.
- Flip them upright and place in a cool, dry place for 12-24 hours to continue cooling. You should hear them pop when they seal.
- When completely cooled, be sure to test jars for proper sealing.
Nutrition
This sounds amazing! Do you not need to put the jars in a hot bath?
You can obviously, but we have yet to make this amount and not have it gone in a couple of weeks. If you double the recipe you can do that.
How long for water bath jelly jar size?
Julie, you can process 5 minutes in a boiling water bath. I hope that helps!
I’ve never tried having this on my toast. Looks so light and refreshing!
Thank you! It’s fabulous and so unique and different.
I made this once and it was so good. We used it for so many different things. I forgot about it last year and I think honeysuckle should be blooming soon and I need to make some again.
We love honeysuckle here and we are chomping at the bit to get back out there and pull some more. Spring get here soon! Thanks for the sweet comment!
We made this over the weekend and finally got to try some tonight on some biscuits and wow! I am so happy I found this recipe.
There are two kinds of honeysuckle bushes.Are you using the kind pictured that are small and Bush like?
We did use the ones pictured, however I can assure you our honeysuckle bushes are HUGE. Much taller than I am in most cases. I have a suspicion that you can use ANY sweet fragrant honeysuckle, so I would think the same would apply no matter what. Good luck!
I made this once and it was so good. We used it for so many different things. I forgot about it last year and I think honeysuckle should be blooming soon and I need to make some again.
We made this over the weekend and finally got to try some tonight on some biscuits and wow! I am so happy I found this recipe.
I made this and it’s soooo yummy! I Made 3 batches but unfortunately 2 of the 3 didn’t set (I over boiled due to a cow getting loose, yes he did it twice), so I now have what I call Honey Suckle ‘Syrup’. Used it to glaze a ham the other day and oh my was it tasty! We’ve also used it on pancakes as a maple syrup substitute. Good to know that even the oopsie jars can be used!
Frances, No “oopsie” jars are ever wasted at our farm either! Even when it doesn’t set, it’s still good for so many things. We like to mix our flower jellies into plain yogurt and then add fruit. I bet that ham was fabulous!
I made this over the weekend and it’s delicious, but way too thick. Once it’s in the fridge, it’s so thick that it’s basically solid candy in a jar.
I’m sorry you had trouble with this. We tested this recipe multiple times and have yet to encounter this.
However, I decided to try to go on a hunt and see if I could find out first, what caused it and secondly how to fix it.
So the National Center for Home Food Preservation says “Stiff jams or jellies may result from
In the case of too little sugar, excessive cooking to concentrate the sugar to the jellying point is required. Too much under-ripe fruit can result in too much pectin.”
You can read more here: https://nchfp.uga.edu/how/can_07/stiff_jelly.html
There are other suggestions on how to use the jelly even though it is harder.
I also read a few places where others mentioned heating the jelly a few seconds in the microwave and it becomes spreadable.
I hope some of these ideas worked for you.
Do I measure the honeysuckle by packing in measuring cups or just by scooping up a cup full after cleaning them
Want to make sure I have enough
Thanks
Hi there Judy, So I’ve made this dozens of times, and I have done it both ways. If you really pack them down, they will give a much stronger flavor. But some Spring and Summer seasons, there is just less to be had, or I missed my window of opportunity, and I’ve had to simply just scoop up what I could get. The main difference is how MUCH flavor you wind up with. Even with simply scooping, I have adjusted the recipe to reflect the right amount of flavor. With only scooping them and filling them. I do try to push them down a little bit and get as much as I can in each cup, but you will still wind up with a beautiful, floral almost honey like flavor no matter which one you choose. I hope that helps!
Good luck!
Your recipe was intriguing. I tried to divide the recipe to just make one jar because I wasn’t sure I would like the taste of honeysuckle jelly. Mine didn’t set, maybe I miss calculated when I divided the recipe. I’m not one to fret over such things, I found a great use for the syrup 🙂 Gin, a squeeze of lemon, some honeysuckle syrup and a splash of club soda. Worth a repeat try for sure. I just know I would love this as a jelly too. Thanks for sharing your wonderful recipe.
Can you not use white blossoms, only yellow?
If you would like to use white blossoms, you can, but the yellow are the most fragrant and full of the most nectar, which is why we recommend using those. You may need to adjust the quantity you use to allot for more flavor. I hope this helps explain it!