Rose Petal Jelly
Contributed by Chrissy Hyde, Rose Petal Jelly is a low-sugar cooked jelly made with Pomona’s Universal Pectin. Pomona’s Pectin contains no sugar or preservatives and jells reliably with low amounts of any sweetener. Chrissy says, “Rose Petal Jelly is very popular with the Persian and Eastern European communities that often use roses in cooking. A friend of mine who spent time in Moldova (a landlocked country in Eastern Europe located between Romania to its west and Ukraine to its north, east, and south. Its capital city is Chișinău) asked me to try and re-create the Rose Petal Jelly she had while there. When she tasted it, she said it was just as she remembered! It was heavenly on a plain scone.”
Notes
Note about rose petals: Chrissy says: “Be sure they have not been sprayed with any chemicals. I purchased my dried rose petals at Spice & Tea Exchange. Break off and discard any large white pieces. The white part of the rose will make your jelly bitter.”
Servings 5 cups
Ingredients
- 4½ cups hot water not boiling
- 1 cup dried dark pink rose petals white part removed. (3 cups fresh rose petals can be used in place of 1 cup dried petals) *see note
- 3½ teaspoons calcium water see step #1
- ½ cup lemon juice bottled
- 1¾ cups sugar
- 3½ teaspoons Pomona’s Pectin powder mixed with sweetener
Instructions
- Before you begin, prepare calcium water.To do this, combine ½ teaspoon calcium powder (in the small packet in your box of Pomona’s pectin) with ½ cup water in a small, clear jar with a lid. Shake well.Extra calcium water should be stored in the refrigerator for future use.
- Prepare boiling water canner. Heat jars in simmering water until ready for use. Wash lids and bands and set aside.
- Boil water and allow it to cool for 5 minutes before pouring over the rose petals in a sauce pan or heat proof bowl with lid. Cover and allow the petals to steep for 20 minutes.
- Using a food mill, a fine mesh strainer, or cheesecloth, drain and discard the rose petals, reserving the infused water.
- Measure 4 cups of infused water into a sauce pan. (If necessary, add extra water to meet this measurement.)
- Add calcium water and lemon juice, and mix well.
- Measure sugar into a bowl. Thoroughly mix pectin powder into sugar. Set aside.
- Bring mixture in sauce pan to a full boil. Add pectin-sugar mixture, stirring vigorously for 1 to 2 minutes to dissolve the pectin while the jelly comes back up to a boil. Once the jelly returns to a full boil, remove it from the heat.
- Remove hot jars from canner and fill jars with (marmalade/jam/jelly), leaving ¼ inch of headspace. Remove trapped air bubbles, wipe rims and put on lids and screw bands, tightening bands only to “fingertip tight” (until resistance is met, and then just the tiniest bit more).
- Place jars in the hot water, on the rack inside the canner. (Make sure jars are upright, not touching each other or the sides of the canner, and are covered with at least 1-2 inches of water). Place the lid on the canner, bring the canner to a rolling boil, and boil for 10 minutes. (Add 1 minute additional processing time for every 1000 feet above sea level.)
- Turn off heat and allow canner and jars to sit for 5 minutes. Then, remove jars from canner. Allow jars to cool undisturbed for 12-24 hours. Then, confirm that jars have sealed, then store properly. Eat within 1 year. Lasts 3 weeks once opened.
Is this recipe considered a “safe” recipe? Or a “rebel” recipe?
This recipe would be considered safe based on its pH.
Just made this with pink tea roses from garden and frozen lemon juice from family trees. Added maybe an extra 1/4 if that of lemon juice since it’s not as concentrated and it came out amazing! Will be using this recipe again
Could this recipe be adapted to your fruit candy recipe? I’m looking for something like Turkish delights. Thank you.
Yes, that should work just fine!
Be warned. Floral flavors are very dilicate and subtle. However it does grow on you. This recipe is very reminiscent of the Turkish Delight I bought in a local Turkish market. I found the first burst of flowering on the rose bushes is the best time. I also tried different varieties of roses but couldn’t tell any difference in the flavor. Now I can’t walk past a rose bush without thinking jelly.
I am looking at two recipes in “a feast of flowers”, One for Rose petal jelly and the other rose jam, which both call for all the rose petals to stay in the jelly/jam. These are supposedly old/traditional recipes. So I was thinking about just proceeding with your rose petal jelly recipe BUT NOT STRAINING THE PETALS OUT TO MAKE THE INTERMEDIATE TEA.
What do y’all think!?
(I was thinking about sending photos of these recipes, but… Couldn’t figure out how to do that…)
Can I use dried jasmine flowers in this recipe? They are the same as what is in jasmine tea.
Thanks!
We would actually suggest using our tea jelly HERE for your dried jasmine.
Can I make this in my Ball jam and jelly maker? As long as the overall liquid/fruit and sugar equals roughly 5 cups can I use any of the Pomona recipes in it?
Great question!
Yes, you can use Pomona’s to make jam in your electric jam maker or bread machine. You will need to follow a Pomona’s recipe and the basic directions for Cooked Jam – Low Sugar or Honey for it to work properly.
You need to mash & measure the fruit into a bowl. If our recipe is too big for your machine, then you can do a half recipe. Add the calcium water & lemon juice (if called for) and stir well. Then mix the pectin into the sugar (or other sweetener) and then add the pectin-sweetener mix into the bowl of fruit and stir well. Then put the bowl of jam mixture into the machine and turn it on.
Happy jamming!
I love this jelly and now make it every year. There are gorgeous wild roses near my home and when they are almost finished I gather some of the petals for this jelly. It is a favourite with my friends and family as well. I also use the rose syrup to make popsicles and they are also delicious!
I’m excited to try this recipe – I have one question: Can I substitute Pyure or Swerve Brand sugar replacement? Swerve is made with erythritol and oligosaccharides and measures like sugar. Pyure is made with erythritol and stevia extract but uses 1/2 measurement to sugar (2 cups sugar = 1 cup Pyure All Purpose Stevia Blend).
Hello Joni,
You can sure give it a try! It should work just fine, though it may crystalize over time.
Can I substitute lilac petals here or peony petals here in equal quantities instead of the rose petals & the rest of the recipe be followed exactly & a pH safe jelly be produced?
We have never used lilac or peony petals in this recipe, but we cannot see why you would not be able to make a direct replacement for the rose petals with the peonies or lilacs.
Happy jamming!
I made lilac jelly using Pomona’s Pectin. A very delicate jelly. Lilac is hard to capture. I made lilac sugar first and used that in this recipe.
4 cups light purple lilac blossoms from my yard. Separated, as little green as possible. ( green can be bitter). Steeped in 4 cups filtered water.
Wash and rinse until you are certain they are clean.
Make the rest as above or follow the violet jelly recipe.
In this recipe for rose jelly, can I leave a few rose petals in the jelly?
Hello Reba,
That should be fine and very pretty. We cannot think of why that would effect your jelly, enjoy!
Thank you so much for your wonderful response, I’m looking forward to making this jelly
Just made the Rose Petal jelly, all I can say is heavenly, so delicately flavored, I followed the recipe exactly, I used fresh rose petals from my yard, I don’t spray anything on them, also they have a wonderful fragrance to them, they also grow near a lemon and Orange tree, I think the rose petals taste a bit citrusy. Anyway, thank you so much for the wonderful recipe, will definitely be making more, just have to wait for the roses 🌹
If I wanted to add raspberries or strawberries to this jelly, how would I do that safely? Guess it would be more a jam then…
Thanks for answering.
We have never done it, but we believe you could substitute 1 cup of strawberry juice or raspberry juice for 1 cup of the boiling water if you’d like to give that a try!
Well it’s been a minute since I asked this question. However, I just made this rose/strawberry jelly and it’s amazing. Fresh rose petals from my yard steeped to get 3 cups of tea/infusion and then a pint of frozen organic strawberries cooked for a bit then put through a jelly sock to get 1 cup strawberry juice. The rest of the recipe is the same.
I just saw peony jelly on the web – how would I make that using pomona pectin
I am looking for a rose petal wine jelly recipe. I bought some at a craft show many years ago and van no longer find it? Any help would be appreciated!
Hello Jo,
We do not have a developed Rose Petal Wine Jelly developed at the present. If you wanted to give it a try I would substitute 2 cups of the water in this recipe for 2 cups of your choice of wine, then proceed according to the recipe directions.
Happy jamming!
Kindly,
Shelby
Sorry, I am just seeing this!!!! I actually forgot I posted. Anyway, thank you so much for your input! I think I will try this as soon as I get the rosepetals! Would you have a specific type wine you’d recommend?
Can anyone answer why this recipe calls.for so much lemon juice?
I am consulting another recipe that calls for fresh petals, because that is what I have, and it only calls for 1 1/2 two of lemon juice. It is a regular pectin recipe tho.
All of our recipes are developed to have a safe pH level for preserving. The 1/2 cup of lemon juice aids in achieving the safe pH level for this Rose Petal Jelly.
Please let me know if there is anything else I can help you with!
Have a wonderful day!
Kindly,
Shelby
Thanks so much for this recipe. I have been looking everywhere for liquid pectin (which my original recipe called for Rose Petal Jelly). Was unable to find it except on line, but I frequently use Pomona’s Universal Pectin, so thought I would check the recipes.
My question is this, can I use fresh rose petals from my own yard? I know they are “spray free” and would love to make use of them. Thanks again for a great recipe.
Hi Cathe,
Yes, you can use your fresh rose petals in the recipe for Rose Petal Jelly. Typically you would need 3 cups of fresh rose petals to equal 1 cup of dried.
You want to be sure to cut off and discard any large white pieces on the fresh petals. The white part of the rose will make your jelly bitter.
Would love to hear how your jelly turns out — and Happy Jamming!
Thanks so much for your answer. I made the jelly before I received your answer so just used six cups (loosely filled cups of fresh rose petals). I also added 1 tablespoon of Rose Water. It turned out very well, could be a bit stronger with the rose flavor, but texture & consistency were perfect.
I LOVE YOUR PRODUCT! THANKS SO MUCH FOR THE ABILITY TO ASK QUESTIONS TOO. This is the first pectin I have found that allows me to cut way back (or eliminate) sugar.
This is exactly what I wanted for a small hostess gift when we are invited out to dinner, or perhaps a gift for neighbors around the holidays.
Peace
I substituted 3 cups of fresh violets for the dry rose petals. Turned out wonderful! Just the right amount of sweetness.Thanks for sharing your recipe!
Dear Diane,
Thanks for sharing your recipe. I’m glad it turned out so well.
Could you please clarify the amount of dried rose petals to use for this jelly? A CUP of dried rose petals… Should I crush them to fill the cup? Or have them loose?
Thank you!… Virginia
Hello Virginia,
I checked with Chrissy Hyde to get clarification on what exactly she did. She sent the link below so you can see what they looked like.
Chrissy said: “I used rose petal pieces from Spice and Tea Exchange that looked like this. So, yes, they are kind of broken up.
“I hope that helps!”
Best,
Chrissy
Also, Chrissy purchased the 1-ounce package of dried rose petals. One cup weighs a little over 2/3 of an ounce.
What a wonderful gift to share this recipe! Since you are the expert, I’d rather come down to the Farmers Market to try yours, and check out what else you are selling. Thanks again! 🙂