Honeysuckle Jelly & Soothing Throat Syrup

Fireflies.

Rainstorms.

Crickets.

Katydids.

Honeysuckle.

It's summer y'all...

Time for another batch of Honeysuckle Jelly!

You know the tiny drop of liquid goodness (ok, nectar…but it's delicious) that you get from one honeysuckle blossom?  Multiply that by a spoonful, and that's what it's like to have honeysuckle jelly on toast. mmmmm….. :)

I first made this Honeysuckle Jelly a few years ago when the house we moved into had honeysuckle all along the wood line in the back yard.  It started because we were looking for a Honeysuckle Ice Cream recipe (still haven't made that).…it's become a family favorite.

When we moved into the house we're in now, I was incredibly excited because there were two bushes in the back yard with honeysuckle vines in addition to two more sections in the back of the yard with honeysuckle.  I made a batch and gave jars to family members, then waited for the next year to come around to make more.  Big mistake….apparently, honeysuckle (and pecans?) show up every other year….and all of our honeysuckle are on the same rotation it seems.  This year I've learned from my mistake and am not letting this year's "harvest" go to waste! :)

I'm about to make another batch in the next day or so...so I thought I'd post the recipe I found and am using for future reference.

I use this recipe at New Life On A Homestead, but I double everything so that I can use a full pack of liquid pectin in each batch.  I get 7 half pints of jelly each time (not filled completely to the rim)…and they go fast! :D

I also like to make cute labels for my jars. :)  I just cut a circle of scrapbook paper,

wrote the name and date on there, and put the lid back on the jar.

Oh yes, and I reuse clean jars….like those miniature baby food jars. :D

I always have extra honeysuckle water/infusion/tea/wonderful-smelling-liquid-from-steeping.  I keep this in my fridge in a jar and add it to hot tea as a sweetener (mmmmmm…..) and I make a batch of honeysuckle syrup for my sister.  At the beginning of every summer, she gets a scratchy throat from the excessive amount of pollen we have around our houses.  She swears by this syrup to help soothe her throat.  The first time I made her a batch, she drank it like water haha! (Not recommended because then it will be all gone too fast!)

Honeysuckle Soothing Throat Syrup

1 cup Honeysuckle infusion

1/2 cup water

1 tablespoon honey (preferably local honey, if available)

1 teaspoon lemon juice

Heat the honeysuckle infusion and water on medium heat, so that it's somewhere between simmering and boiling.  Add the honey and lemon juice and stir until the honey is well combined with the infusion.  Let cool and pour into a bottle to keep in the refrigerator.  Drink about 2 tablespoons (warm or cold, but warm is more soothing) or add to hot tea and enjoy!