The Latest Blessing From The Farm...

Liljegren's Hickory Hill Farm Lilac Jelly

Our weather was unseasonably warm last weekend, so I didn't spend as much time as I'd hoped in the sewing studio. I didn't want to have my sewing machine and my iron further heating up the space.

Instead, I decided to make lilac jelly (for the first time). The results were so fabulous that I spent the past two days making more.

Liljegren's Hickory Hill Farm Lilac Jelly

All of these jars were created with blossoms from the same lilac bush in our yard. (I have a sprig from that bush in front of the jars in the first photo.) We have two others in the near yard (different colors), plus a grove of really old ones in the front corner of our yard.

I decided to harvest from the same bush for my first experiment in making this lilac jelly, and there were a total of four batches created this time.

Hickory Hill Farm Lilac Jelly (L: Afternoon Blossoms R: Morning Blossoms)

 

I learned last year that most sources suggest harvesting the fruit (or in this case, blossoms) early in the day, so that's what I did for three of the batches. The resulting morning blossom jelly is on the right in the above photograph. It's a golden/honey color with a touch of peach tinge.

 

I went back into the yard for the last portion of blossoms around 2 pm yesterday, and made my final batch for the day. The result is this gorgeous, peachy/pink color shown on the left. All the batches taste the same, but I learned that I can harvest at different times of the day for differences in the final color of the jellies.

 

If the weather stays nice today (we're expecting rain), I'm going to take blossoms from the bush closest to our old apple tree. Those blooms are the palest of pink, leaning toward white. I'm interested to see if blossom color further affects the color and flavor of the jelly. 

In the meantime, I'm creating the most wonderful of treats - yet another gift of the farm - that will be enjoyed long after the blossoms with their heavenly fragrance are spent for this season. I'll savor this jelly on toast on chilly fall mornings, or spread on a delicate slice of pound cake (baked from my grandmother's recipe), and then topped with a bit of whipped cream.

I'm also looking forward to sharing a portion with our family. As I stood at the stove, I imagined our granddaughters, in years hence, standing in our kitchen, recreating these same treats from this grandmother's recipes to share with their families - right here at our family farm - and my heart is full.