Clementine & Elderflower Jellies

March 1, 2014 by Laura Haugen 23 Comments

Elderflowers, or holunderblüten, are used here in Germany to make juices, jams, and cordials, and are believed to relieve symptoms of flu, colds, and allergies and maintain healthy, clear sinuses. I found a bottle of amber syrup made of these blossoms and decided to try it in little heart-shaped jellies with clementine juice. They came out beautiful and were devoured within a few minutes! I realized this is a great way to make nutritious snacks, controlling the sugar content and loading them with vitamins and immunity-boosting nutrients. Can you find elderflower syrup where you are? If so, give this a try!

I got the idea for these jellies from the wonderful blog, Rachel Cooks, and her homemade white grape fruit snacks, and after searching some, I discovered a multitude of versions. I decided to try out a relatively small amount of gelatin (other versions use double or triple the amount) to keep them jiggly, but if you’re going for more of a chewy, gummy-bear consistency, by all means, up the amount of gelatin. I used a silicone mold for the heart shapes, but it also works in a regular glass baking dish, cut into shapes with a sharp knife or little cookie cutters. My head is spinning thinking about more shapes and flavor combinations — the possibilities are endless! Now, go discover yours.

Clementine & Elderflower Jellies

• 2/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (about 4 lemons)
• 1 cup freshly squeezed clementine juice (about 4 clementines)
• 1/3 cup elderflower syrup (with 50% elderflowers)
• 1 oz./28 g. powdered gelatin

Directions:

Mix the juice and syrup together in a medium saucepan. Sprinkle the gelatin over the mixture and let sit until the grains of the powder swell, about 3 minutes. Heat over medium heat, stirring constantly, until it all the gelatin is dissolved and it starts to steam but not boil, about 7 minutes. Pour into silicone molds or into a baking sheet or other container, let cool, and then cover and refrigerate for about 4 hours, or until set. Carefully remove from the molds or cut into squares or other shapes using a sharp knife or small cookie cutters. They can be kept for a week in a sealed container in the fridge, if little hands don’t get to them first…