Spring is coming, the flowers are starting to bloom again and the bees are flying around happily in search of nectar to make honey. This honey is actually meant for the bees themselves and not for us. Do you still love honey? Then we have an environmentally and animal-friendly solution for you: vegan dandelion honey. Yes you read it right, honey made from dandelions. A dandelion tastes deliciously sweet, we also made it before lemonade syrup From. Trust us: you will want to try this recipe!
Honey made from dandelions?
Anyone who has ever tasted a dandelion as a child knows that dandelions taste a bit bitter. They are therefore often seen as weeds. But did you know that dandelions are actually very healthy? These native flowers are packed with vitamins, are good for metabolism and support kidney and liver function. You can make tea from them, you can add them to salads and if you don't like that bitter taste, just make syrup or honey. We are overjoyed to have found a delicious recipe for vegan dandelion honey, as it is the ideal substitute for bee honey. After all, as we concluded earlier in this article, there is actually no sustainable and animal-friendly honey.
Picking dandelions and making dandelion honey is also a super fun activity to do with your (grand)children.
Picking dandelions for your own vegan dandelion honey
Of course, to make your own dandelion honey, you need dandelions. So we also provide your daily dose of exercise and fresh air. Thank us later. Since dandelions grow almost everywhere, you are bound to find some in your neighbourhood. Make sure you collect the dandelions in a place where there is little traffic and few dogs or cats. You can find dandelions in the Netherlands as early as January during mild winters, but they usually bloom best in April. With a bit of luck, you will also find dandelions in May, and if autumn is really mild, you might also come across the occasional dandelion in December. Since you need quite a few dandelions for our recipe, we recommend looking for them as early as April. The best time to look for dandelions is on a sunny morning, when the flowers are open and the dew has just dried.
Recipe: vegan dandelion honey
Kitchenware
- 2 pans
- tea towel
- glass jars(content in total 1 litre)
Ingredients
- 100 dandelion heads
- 1 litres water
- 1 kg sugar
- half an organic lemon
- half an organic orange
Instructions
- Put the dandelion heads (i.e. just the yellow part) in a pan and then pour the water into the pan. Whether you should wash the dandelions beforehand, opinions are divided. Some say it is better not to wash the flowers because otherwise valuable ingredients will be lost. But, of course, it is more hygienic to wash them beforehand. I let it depend on where I collected the dandelions.
- Slice half the lemon and orange and also add them to the pan.
- Boil the whole thing for about 10 minutes and then let it cool again. Cover the pan and let it stand for 24 hours.
- The next day, drain the dandelion heads, lemon and orange with a tea towel so that only the liquid remains. At the end, catch the mixture in the tea towel so you can squeeze out the last liquid.
- Add the sugar to the liquid and bring to the boil. Simmer on a low heat, stirring each time.
- Just cook until the consistency is about the same as normal honey. This can take at least an hour. You can test the consistency of the honey by taking a small spoonful of honey out of the pan and letting it cool on a plate.
Notes
- Rinse the glass jars you will store the honey in with boiling water beforehand. Don't forget the lids. Then put the jars in the oven at 100°C for another 10 minutes and make sure everything is thoroughly dry before putting in the honey. This way, the honey will keep for about a year.
- Store the dandelion honey in a dry and dark place. Do not store it in the fridge as the honey will crystallise.
Taking a picking break: do you know the game picking rules yet?
Wild picking is not only super fun (and tasty!), but also something you need to know a little about. It is officially banned in the Netherlands, but in many places it is turned a blind eye - as long as you do it properly. Think of nature as a wonderful buffet we can all taste from, but only if we behave. So pick with love, not greed. Want to know more? Read the unwritten rules of wild picking. We have listed it for you!
More sustainable tips from thegreenlist.nl
- Want to know more about wild picking? Saskia went on a wild-picking walk in Amsterdam.
- Also tasty and fun to make yourself: elderflower syrup.
- Savoury wild game recipe: Dutch pesto of ground elder and wild garlic.
- Native plants? Read why they are so important here.
Sources: velt.nu, Flora of the Netherlands. Photo credits: main image honey pot: Nicola Barts (Pexels), other: thegreenlist.nl.
