Wild rose syrup: Deliciously inspiring

Every Rose Has its Thorn: Poison, 1988. 

Bed of Roses: Bon Jovi, 1992.

Kiss From a Rose: Seal, 1994.

Wild rose syrup: today's Arctic Kitchen recipe. 

Roses have inspired us for years.

That's likely because, like us, roses are complicated: beautiful and prickly.

Despite their delicate complexity, we can all agree they smell amazing.

But did you know that roses taste great too? It's true. Especially wild roses.

That's what Sandra Zolondek found out after she made her very first batch of wild rose syrup.

"It tastes exactly like the wild rose smells," she said in an interview with CBC North on Facebook Messenger.

"I personally love rose perfume."

Zolondek was thirsty to try something with the wild roses growing in her Yellowknife backyard. 

And nothing was going to stop her.

"With my bug net on and bug spray [I] went in my backyard and pick[ed] the petals early in the morning after I read that their fragrance is most potent early in [the] morning,'' she said.

"The mosquitoes were so bad I did it in two separate days."

That determination was worth it. In the end she got six cups of wild rose petals.

Then she got down to work in her kitchen.

"I put the petals in a stainless steel bowl and mashed them with a cup of sugar, then put it in the fridge overnight in a sealed container."

"The fragrance was absolutely amazing," she said.

The next day she added sugar, lemon, salt and simmered it for about 30 minutes.

Then she strained it through a coffee filter. 

"The smell was amazing and stronger," she said.

Then she sterilized some bottles and poured in the syrup.

After that, she shared beautiful pictures of the final product on our Arctic Kitchen Facebook group.

Members clamoured for the recipe, which she quickly posted and then revealed that this wild rose syrup is not a secret family recipe passed down over the years. 

She found it on Pinterest. 

"I made it for fun and thought it was worth sharing it," she said to CBC.

"I just like to experiment with the beauty Mother Nature provides us with."

Now she's enjoying it in the midsummer heat.

"I make lemonade and use the syrup as a sweetener," she said.

"It's delicious!"