After a post Christmas lull the roses are back in full swing. They're blooming so fast I can't keep up.
I was catching up on an old stack of The Sydney Morning Herald's Good Living (Tuesday, August 16, 2011) and came across an article about Rose Petal Jam by Beata Zatorska. I had seen the book in shops but didn't know that Zatorska began it as a travel memoir. She went back to the polish village she had left over 30 years ago and visited her grandmother's grave. Remembering her culinary grandmother Zatorska began to include recipes in her book. The rose petal jam of the title was this grandmother's recipe.
Roses: Duet, William Shakespeare, French Lace
Inspired by the idea of rose petal jam I went looking for a recipe. What I found was Rose Conserve, 'This Italian delicacy is wonderful stirred into vanilla ice-cream or fruit drinks' (Margret O'Sullivan's Jams, Jellies and marmalades). The recipes consist of layering sugar and rose petals in a jar and resting for a few days until the sugar melts.
Roses, beloved by bees and spiders
The recipe calls for 225g (8oz) rose petals to 3 cups (1.5 lb) sugar. I only had 180g of petals so I worked out that it was a ratio of 1:3 oz, petals to sugar. That sorted, all that was left was to pluck the petals, cut of the white, yellow or green tip (I am told it tastes bitter) and layer the petals in a jar with the sugar (first layer of sugar).
Bottled petals along side their living counter part
In a few days I hope to have lovely pink syrup. I will keep you posted!
-Pulse
