Clover, a hidden jewel!

Many of us, myself included, always thought of clover as a weed.
Recently, watching how much our bees LOVE it, I started finding out more about it...yes, it's good for the garden by putting nitrogen back into the soil. But, did you know it's also full of sweet honey-like flavor? I had to try jelly...

I needed two cups of flower heads...so I enlisted my husband and sons help. (The white clover is much smaller than the red clover flower. We picked both, but didn't mix them. Two separate batches.)
Red clover flowers. (Isn't it funny that these are called "red" clover, yet they're actually purple...)
Next, I steeped them in two cups hot water overnight. (I covered the bowl with cheese cloth, to let a little air in, and my cats out!
The next morning I strained the mixture, with the cheese cloth, and squeezed as much water out of the flowers as possible! Hoping for as close to two cups as possible, adding water to reach it if needed (but I didn't need to).
I was left with a pretty mucky looking liquid. I froze the white clover liquid, to be turned into jelly at a later date. And I used the red clover liquid for my first batch.
 The recipe I followed called for four tablespoons lemon juice; (it was good, but next time I'll probably try only two.) And interesting...when I added it, the liquid turned a beautiful soft pink color! Amazing...

I added one packet pectin and four cups of sugar. Processing as usual.

I ended up with a beautiful jelly! Tasty too. Not too sweet...perfect!

Do y'all have a yard overrun with clover? Don't overlook this precious jewel!

This was shared at the Farmgirl Friday Blog Hop, From the Farm Blog Hop, The Country Homemaker Hop, and Share Your Cup Thursday!

-Live Simple, Be Happy-
Magnolia Holler