North American Wild Violet and Wild Violet Jelly Recipe
Wild violets pop up all over the fields and yards in springtime. They’re edible and packed with benefits. This jelly turned out terrific after a bit of tweaking and trial and error. (story of my life). It’s extremely easy and makes for fun little gifts since it yields too much for someone that isn’t a huge fan of sweets.
It’s a good idea to learn about what you’re foraging and eating. So, here we go.
- Where and when can I find wild violets, and what do they even look like?
- The Creeping Charlie is NOT a wild violet.
- Why do people eat wild violets?
- What are the medicinal uses of the wild violets?
- The Wild Violet Jelly Recipe
Where and when can I find wild violets, and what do they even look like?
These delicate wildflowers have dark green, heart shaped leaves and the flowers sit on a long, leafless stem. The flowers range in shades of violet and have five atypical petals.
The entire plant is edible and has a ton of culinary and medicinal uses.
Edible wild violets grow throughout most of North America. These edible plants are found in the lower provinces of Canada, all throughout most of the United States and even spread into the more North Eastern parts of Mexico.
You can find these beautiful purple flowers growing in hay fields, pastures, along and in wooded areas or bush and even in your own backyard.
Where there is one, there are usually many.
The property I hunt turkey on in the springtime is rich with these little wild violets. It seems like the prime environment for them. There are running creeks and dense bush with a beautiful hayfield.
I commonly see these flowers on the grassy banks of the creeks that run along the bushes and in hayfields surrounded by woods or dense trees. These flowers tend to prefer areas that see some shade.
The Creeping Charlie is NOT a wild violet.
This isnt a lecture, but if you’re going to be picking wild flowers and weeds to eat, you also have to be aware of the look-alikes.
Ground Ivy, commonly referred to as Creeping Charlie is edible, but it’s not a wild violet.
I do think it’s important to note that while ground ivy or creeping charlie is not toxic to humans, it is in fact toxic to horses. It’s bitter, so I don’t personally worry about horses indulging on it enough to show any symptoms of poisoning.
The Creeping Charlie kind of looks like wild violets, but you can quickly tell them apart if you know what to look for.
The leaves of the creeping charlie are more round with much more jagged edges than a wild violet’s anatomically incorrect heart shaped leaves.
This plant does also feature purple flowers, but there are generally three or more flowers per stem, opposed to the single flower on a wild violet stem. The flowers themselves are funnel shaped, unlike the violet that has open petals.
They kinda sorta look like wild violets, but not really.
Why do people eat wild violets?
Along with the fact that they make gorgeous and yummy jellies, sugars, syrups and add an aesthetically pleasing touch to salads and desserts, the health benefits alone are enough to encourage you to forage and harvest wild violets.
These edible wild plants (flower and leaves included) will supply you with a significant amount of Vitamin A and Vitamin C, antioxidants, salicylic acid and anti-inflammatory agents.
Vitamin A is best known for strongly supporting vision and eye health. It encourages healthy cells and reduces the vision decline that occurs naturally with age.
By maintaining a healthy and natural mucus barrier in your digestive and reproductive tract, eyes and lungs - Vitamin A is essential for immune health. Your natural immune system is always your best defense.
The Vitamin C found in wild violets is probably our best known and most effective vitamin. It’s an antioxidant and supports your immune system immensely.
You always hear people say “you better get some Vitamin C in” come cold and flu season…
Just like Vitamin A, Vitamin C also helps with healthy vision.
You will also see many beauty experts claim that Vitamin C is essential in your skincare routine as it helps form collagen to keep your skin looking younger and more firm.
Salicylic Acid can both ease headaches and help you get a more restful sleep. The wild violet flowers and plants are often infused as a tea in virtually the same way as the beginning steps of the wild violet jelly recipe I have included.
I will definitely be trying the tea this spring, so subscribe if you wish to join my (weekly, not spammy) newsletter to see the other recipes and uses I explore with this plant.
What are the medicinal uses of the wild violets?
There are a few great medicinal uses for these wild violet plants and flowers. As previously mentioned, the flowers and leaves can be infused into a tea for multiple uses.
Violet leaves are soaked in the same way we’re going to soak the wild violet flowers in the recipe below to make a tea. This brew from the leaves is used for its nutritional value and antiinflammatory properties with honey to make cough syrup.
The anti-inflammatory powers of the plant also make it ideal for topical salves to aid with bug bites, mild skin irritation and skin dryness. The leaves are typically infused in oil for topical solutions.
While I am out hunting this coming spring (2024), I’ll be sure to collect the leaves as well so we can try cough syrups and topical ointments.
Bug bites are a constant struggle for me in the summer, so that’s at the top of my list - try wild violet bug bite cream.
The Wild Violet Jelly Recipe
Wild violet jelly tastes sweet and citrusy with a floral hint. It’s absolutely delicious on all types of scones, crackers, toast and in any dessert recipe that calls for jelly.
This vibrant jelly can be stored unsealed in the fridge for a couple of weeks, or properly vacuum sealed or canned for up to 2 years.
Lucky for some of us, wild violets pop up during spring turkey season. I usually forage after a turkey hunt, as we can only hunt turkey until 7pm - there is typically enough daylight to harvest a few cups of violets.
The jelly turned out terrific after a bit of tweaking and trial and error. (story of my life). It’s extremely easy to make, unique and makes for fun little gifts if you have more than you will consume.
This recipe made 1000ml of jelly. That’s two regular sized mason jars. (you know, the kind. that make great drinking glasses).
You can clearly store these any way you please. The last time I made this recipe I used one 500ml mason jar and four 125ml jars. The 125ml jars are nice to have for gifts or snacks.
For 1000mls of jelly, I used 3 cups of wild violet flowers. It took a while to pick them, but with the beautiful spring weather and the joy of being outdoors - who cares.
After returning home, rinse the violets well. You are going to have little bugs, ants, dust - things you don’t want in tea. Rinse the flowers well.
After a good rinse, place the flowers in a large mason jar and pour four cups of boiling water over top of the violets.
Be sure to stir the mixture to saturate all of the flowers and release any air. Put the lid on the jar and keep it in a dark, cool place for at least 24 hours.
A cold storage is a great space for this if you’re lucky enough to have one.
Once your 24 hours have passed, strain out the liquid into a saucepan or pot. I used a coffee filter inside of a strainer for this.
You may now bring the wild violet “tea” that you’ve collected to a boil with the lemon juice (as per my recipe below). Let it get to a rolling boil and continue to boil for only one minute.
You can now add your sugar and pectin. I use cane sugar, but you can use regular white granulated sugar.
Once you’ve added you sugar and pectin, bring the jelly back to a good boil.
Make sure you are watching the pot. I tend to do 29 things at once, so I leave a lot of things to fend for themselves on the stove while cooking.
As soon as the mixture begins to boil, remove it from the heat. Over boiling will make the jelly too runny and it won’t set well.
I was quick with this one, the second it started boiling it was done.
You can now use a funnel to pour your jelly into clean mason jars, leaving about a ¼’’ (quarter inch) of space from the top. This is refferred to as headspace when canning. Don’t forget to wipe the rim of the jar so nothing spoils.
Canning is simple, and a great way to preserve food.
Bring a large pot of water to a rolling boil and gently place the jars inside.
Make sure there is enough space and water so there is at least 1’’ of water over the jars while in the pot. Leave these jars in the boiling water bath for at least 10 minutes, remove with a jar lifter and let the cans sit. You’ll hear a “pop” as they seal.
Once properly sealed, leave your jelly overnight (or for at least 8 hours) until it can set properly. It’s going to look very runny at first, that’s normal. It will become firm and jelly-like with time.
That’s it. Your jelly is done. You can store sealed, unopened jars of jelly in a cool and dark area, but opened jars should be refrigerated.
Enjoy!
Ingredients:
- 3 cups of fresh wild violets
- 4 cups boiling water
- 2 TBSP lemon juice
- 3 cups cane (or regular) sugar
- 2 1/2 pouches of pectin (I use this one)
Pour boiling water into a mason jar with violets. Stir and cover for 24 hours. Be sure to keep this in a cool, dark area.
Strain out the liquid into a pan after 24 hours (I use a coffee filter).
Bring the wild violet “tea” and lemon juice to a boil for one minute. Add your sugar and pectin then bring back to a good boil. As soon as my pan starts to boil, I remove it from the heat. Over boiling tends to make the jelly too runny.
Place your jelly into sterilized mason jars and vacuum seal if storing. This can be stored in the fridge for a couple of weeks, or properly vacuum sealed/canned for up to 2 years.
Wild Violet Jelly
Ingredients
- 3 cups of fresh wild violets
- 4 cups boiling water
- 2 TBSP lemon juice
- 3 cups cane or regular sugar
- 2 1/2 pouches of pectin I use this one
Instructions
- Pour boiling water into a mason jar with violets. Stir and cover for 24 hours. Be sure to keep this in a cool, dark area.
- Strain out the liquid into a pan after 24 hours (I use a coffee filter).
- Bring the wild violet “tea” and lemon juice to a boil for one minute. Add your sugar and pectin then bring back to a good boil. As soon as my pan starts to boil, I remove it from the heat. Over boiling tends to make the jelly too runny.
- Place your jelly into sterilized mason jars and vacuum seal if storing. This can be stored in the fridge for a couple of weeks, or properly vacuum sealed/canned for up to 2 years.
