Waking up at the monastery on Island of San Giulio is like waking into a dream itself. One of my favourite parts of the day was breakfast, where the monks supplied bread, butter and a deep pink jar of their famous rose petal jam. Eating roses for breakfast, what an intoxicating, exotic and romantic way to start the day. Your only chance is to visit the monastery and get your hands on a jar of their rose petal jam, but be warned that the shelves empty very quickly! Failing that, you can make your own if you can get hold of some wild roses, like I do with the roses from the garden this season. For me, the best roses would be the ones in bloom from mid May to the middle of June. This recipe is adapted from Artusi’s 1891 cookbook. It is quite a sweet jam, as the syrup serves to set the jam and to take out the slight bitterness of the petals. The syrup will be somewhat more liquid than you may be used to in a jam, so do not try to overcook it as the brilliant colour of the jam will darken. Rose Petal Jam Makes about 700 grams of jam - 600 grams of white caster sugar - 200 grams of rose petals, preferably red or dark pink with a strong perfume - 600 ml water - The juice of one lemon Very gently rinse and drain the rose petals and place them in a large bowl with 200 grams of the sugar and the lemon juice. With your hands, massage the rose petals with this mixture until you reduce the petals to a sort of “paste.” The petals should remain whole, not torn, but with the sugar and lemon they will release colour, perfume and wilt. In the meantime, add the rest of the sugar to the water and heat in a large saucepan until the sugar dissolves. Add the rose petals and bring to the boil. Allow to boil until the syrup thickens and the petals no longer float (about 30 minutes). Remember this is a jam made from flowers, not fruit pulp! It won’t be jammy, but more a lovely silky syrup. Keep an eye on it, and stir every now and then. While still hot, place the jam in clean, sterilised jam jars and allow to cool. This delicately perfumed jam is beautiful on fresh white bread or brioche, with or without a little unsalted butter. Divine — TikTok @eirene_belle