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Edible Flowers
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Preserving Edible
Flowers:
You can also store the whole flower in a glass
of water in the refrigerator overnight.
Candied Flowers:
Candied flowers and petals can be used in a
variety of imaginative ways - to decorate cakes large and small - all kinds
of sweet things, such as ice cream, sherbet, crèmes and fruit salads,
cocktails. Using fresh picked flowers, paint each flower individually with beaten egg white using the artist's paintbrush. When thoroughly coated, sprinkle with fine sugar and place on the wire rack to dry. Flowers are completely dry when stiff and brittle to the touch.
They can be stored in an airtight container
and put in the freezer for up to a year.
Garnishing Cheeses
with Edible Flowers
Edible flowers or herbs of your choice
In the medium size saucepan over medium heat,
combine the white wine and gelatin. Stir until gelatin is completely
dissolved and the mixture is clear. Remove from heat and put the saucepan
in a larger container filled with ice. Keep stirring as it thickens, NOTE: Stir slowly so you don't create bubbles. (If it
gets too thick, you can reheat and repeat.)
Refrigerate about 15 minutes; then remove from
refrigerator and spoon more glaze over the flowers.
NOTE: Make as many layers of glaze as necessary to cover your decorations -
can be three layers for a thick design. If the glaze thickens up too much,
just reheat and replace in ice.
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After falling out of favor for many years, cooking and garnishing with flowers is back in vogue once again. Flower cookery has been traced back to Roman times , and to the Chinese, Middle Eastern, and Indian cultures. Edible flowers were especially popular in the Victorian era during Queen Victoria's reign. Today, many restaurant chefs and innovative home cooks garnish their entrees with flower blossoms for a touch of elegance. The secret to success when using edible flowers is to keep the dish simple, do not add to many other flavors that will over power the delicate taste of the flower. Today this nearly lost art is enjoying a revival.Did you know that broccoli, cauliflower, and artichokes are all flowers? Also the spice saffron is the stamen from the crocus flower? Capers are unopened flower buds to a bush native in the Mediterranean and Asian nations.
The next time you are cooking for your family or friends, impress them with edible flowers, a touch of the exotic gleaned from your own backyard! For a photo of the edible flower and additional information, click on the underlined names.
Alliums
(leeks, chives, garlic, garlic chives) - Known as the "Flowering Onions."
There are approximately four hundred species that includes the familiar onion, garlic,
chives, ramps, and shallots. All members of this genus are edible. Their flavors range
from mild onions and leeks right through to strong onion and garlic. All parts of the
plants are edible. The flowers tend to have a stronger flavor than the leaves and the
young developing seed-heads are even stronger. We eat the leaves and flowers mainly in
salads. The leaves can also be cooked as a flavoring with other vegetables in soups, etc.
Arugula
-
Also
called garden rocket, roquette, rocket-salad, Oruga, Rocketsalad, rocket-gentle;
Raukenkohl (German); rouquelle (French); rucola (Italian). An Italian green usually
appreciated raw in salads or on sandwiches. The flowers are small, white with dark centers
and can be used in the salad for a light piquant flavor. The flowers taste very similar to
the leaves and range in color from white to yellowish with dark purple veins. Arugula resembles radish leaves in both appearance
and taste. Leaves are compound and have a spicy, peppery flavor that starts mild in young
leaves and intensifies as they mature. Aquatic
Plants -
Cattails have edible shoots and roots and even the pollen has been used in
making biscuits. Arrowheads form large edible tubers at the root ends,
called duck potatoes, which were consumed by Native Americans. Watercress (Rorippa
nasturtium-aquaticum) has many historic medicinal uses and its spicy
vegetation continues to be used in salads and garnishes. Water lily roots
are a common source of food in many parts of the world especialy in Far East
and have historic medicinal value.
Bee Balm
- Also called Wild Bergamot, Wild Oswego Tea, Horsemint, Monarda. Wild bee balm tastes
like oregano and mint. The taste of bee balm is reminiscent of citrus with soft mingling
of lemon and orange. The red flowers have a minty flavor. Any place you use oregano, you
can use bee balm blossoms. The leaves and flower petals can also be used in both fruit and
regular salads. The leaves taste like the main ingredient in Earl Gray Tea and can be used
as a substitute.
Broccoli Florets - The top portion of broccoli is actually flower buds. Given time each will burst into a bright yellow flower, which is why they are called florets. Small yellow flowers have a mild spiciness (mild broccoli flavor), and are delicious in salads or in a stir-fry or steamer. Burnet - The taste usually is likened to that of cucumbers, and burnet can be used interchangeably with borage.
Calendula -
Also called Marigolds. A wonderful edible flower. Flavors range from spicy to
bitter, tangy to peppery. Their sharp taste resembles saffron (also known as Poor
Man’s Saffron). Has pretty petals in golden-orange hues. Sprinkle them on soups,
pasta or rice dishes, herb butters, and salads. Petals add a yellow tint to soups,
spreads, and scrambled eggs. Chamomile - The flowers are small and daisy-like and have a sweet, apple-like flavor. NOTE: Drink chamomile tea in moderation as it contains thuaone; ragweed sufferers may be allergic to chamomile. Chervil - Chervil flowers are delicate white flowers with an anise flavor. Chervil's flavor is lost very easily, either by drying the herb, or too much heat. That is why it should be added at the end of cooking or sprinkled on in its fresh, raw state Chicory - Earthy flavor, eat either the petals or the buds. Chicory has a pleasant, mild-bitter taste that has been compared to endive. The buds can be pickled. Chrysanthemums - Tangy, slightly bitter, ranging in colors from red, white, yellow and orange. They range in taste from faint peppery to mild cauliflower. They sould be blanched first and then scatter the petals on a salad. The leaves can also be used to flavor vinegar. Always remove the bitter flower base and use petals only. Young leaves and stems of the Crown Daisy, also known as Chop Suey Greens or Shingiku in Japan, are widely used in oriental stir-fries and as salad seasoning. Cilantro/Coriander - Like the leaves and seeds, the flowers have a strong herbal flavor. Use leaves and flowers raw as the flavor fades quickly when cooked. Sprinkle to taste on salads, bean dishes, and cold vegetable dishes. Citrus blossoms (orange, lemon, lime, grapefruit, kumquat) - Use highly scented waxy petals sparingly. Distilled orange flower water is characteristic of Middle Eastern pastries and beverages. Citrus flavor and lemony. Clover - Sweet, anise-like, licorice. Cornflower - Also called Bachelor’s button. They have a slightly sweet to spicy, clove-like flavor. Bloom is a natural food dye. More commonly used as garnish. Dame's Rocket> (Hesperis matronalis) - Also called Sweet Rocket or Dame's Violet. This plant is often mistaken for Phlox. Phlox has five petals, Dame's Rocket has just four. The flowers, which resemble phlox, are deep lavender, and sometimes pink to white. The plant is part of the mustard family, which also includes radishes, broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, and, mustard. The plant and flowers are edible, but fairly bitter. The flowers are attractive added to green salads. The young leaves can also be added to your salad greens (for culinary purposes, the leaves should be picked before the plant flowers). The seed can also be sprouted and added to salads.NOTE: It is not the same variety as the herb commonly called Rocket, which is used as a green in salads. Dandelions - Member of Daisy family. Flowers are sweetest when picked young, and just before eating. They have a sweet, honey-like flavor. Mature flowers are bitter. Dandelion buds are tastier than the flowers: best to pick these when they are very close to the ground, tightly bunched in the center, and about the size of a small gumball. Good raw or steamed. Also made into wine. Young leaves taste good steamed, or tossed in salads. When serving a rice dish use dandelion petals like confetti over the rice.
Elderberry
-
The blossoms are a creamy color and have a sweet scent and sweet taste. When
harvesting elderberry flowers, do not wash them as that removes much of the fragrance and
flavor. Instead check them carefully for insects. The fruit is used to make wine.
The flowers, leaves, berries, bark and roots have all been used in
traditional folk medicine for centuries.
NOTE: All other
parts of this plant, except the berries, are mildly toxic!
They contain a bitter alkaloid and glycoside
that may change into cyanide.
The cooked ripe berries of the edible elders are harmless.
Eating uncooked berries may cause nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. Fennel - Lovely, star-burst yellow flowers have a mile anise flavor. Use with desserts or cold soups, or as a garnish with entrees. Fuchsia - Blooms have a slightly acidic flavor. Explosive colors and graceful shape make it ideal as garnish. The berries are also edible. Garden Sorrel - Sorrel flowers are tart, lemon tasting. So use like a lemon: on pizza, a salad topping, in sauces, over cucumber salads. Gladiolus - Flowers (anthers removed) have a nondescript flavor (taste vaguely like lettuce) but make lovely receptacles for sweet or savory spreads or mousses. Toss individual petals in salads. Hibiscus - Cranberry-like flavor with citrus overtones. Use slightly acidic petals sparingly in salads or as garnish. Hollyhock - Very bland tasting flavor. Honeysuckle - Sweet honey flavor. Only the flowers are edible. Berries are highly poisonous - Do not eat them! Hyacinth - Only the Wild Hyacinth (Brodiaea douglasii) bulbs are edible. The bulbs can be used like potatoes and eaten either raw or cooked and has a sweet, nutlike flavor. NOTE: The common hyacinth (found in your gardens) is toxic and must not be eaten. Impatiens - Very bland taste. Jasmine - The flowers are intensely fragrant and are traditionally used for scenting tea.
Johnny-Jump-Ups
- Lovely yellow, white and purple blooms have a mild wintergreen flavor and can be
used in salads, to decorate cakes, or served with soft cheese. They are also a great
addition to drinks, soups, desserts or salads. Lavender - Sweet, floral flavor, with lemon and citrus notes. Flowers look beautiful and taste good too in a glass of champagne, with chocolate cake, or as a garnish for sorbets or ice creams. Lavender lends itself to savory dishes also, from hearty stews to wine-reduced sauces. Diminutive blooms add a mysterious scent to custards, flans or sorbets. NOTE: Do not consume lavender oil unless you absolutely know that it has not be sprayed and is culinary safe.
Cottage Cheese-Herb
Bread Lemon Verbena - Tiny cream-colored citrus-scented blossoms. Leaves and flowers steeped as an herb tea, and used to flavor custards and flans.
Lilac - The flavor of lilacs varies from plant to plant. Very perfumy, slightly bitter. Has a distinct lemony taste with floral, pungent overtones. Great in salads.
Linden - Small flowers, white to yellow was are delightfully fragrant and have a honeylike flavor. NOTE: Frequent consumption of linden flower tea can cause heart damage Marjoram - Flowers are a milder version of plant's leaf. Use as you would the herb. Mint - The flavor of the flowers is minty, with different overtones depending on the variety. Mint flowers and leaves are great in Middle Eastern dishes. Mustard - Young leaves can be steamed, used as a herb, eaten raw, or cooked like spinach. NOTE: Some people are highly allergic to mustard. Start with a small amount. Nasturtiums - Come in varieties ranging from trailing to upright and in brilliant sunset colors with peppery flavors. Nasturtiums rank among most common edible flowers. Blossoms have a sweet, spicy flavor similar to watercress. Stuff whole flowers with savory mousse. Leaves add peppery tang to salads. Pickled seed pods are less expensive substitute for capers. Use entire flowers to garnish platters, salads, cheese tortas, open-faced sandwiches, and savory appetizers. Okra - Also known as Ochro, Okoro, Quimgombo, Quingumbo, Ladies Fingers and Gumbo. It has hibiscus-like flowers and seed pods that, when picked tender, produce a delicious vegetable dish when stewed or fried. When cooked it resembles asparagus yet it may be left raw and served in a cold salad. The ripe seeds have been used as a substitute for coffee; the seed can be dried and powdered for storage and future use. Oregano - Milder version of plant's leaf. Use as you would the herb. Pansy - Pansies have a slightly sweet green or grassy flavor. If you eat only the petals, the flavor is extremely mild, but if you eat the whole flower, there is a winter, green overtone. Use them as garnishes, in fruit salads, green salad, desserts or in soups. Pea Blossoms - Edible garden peas bloom mostly in white, but may have other pale coloring. The blossoms are slightly sweet and crunchy and they taste like peas. The shoots and vine tendrils are edible, with a delicate, pea-like flavor. Here again, remember that harvesting blooms will diminish your pea harvest, so you may want to plant extra. NOTE: Flowering ornamental sweet peas are poisonous. Peach blossoms Pear blossoms Peony - In China the fallen petals are parboiled and sweetened as a tea-time delicacy. Peony water was used for drinking in the middle ages. Add peony petals to your summer salad or try floating in punches and lemonades. Pineapple Guava - The flavor is sweet and tropical, somewhat like a freshly picked ripe papaya or exotic melon still warm from the sun. Primrose - Colorful with a sweet, but bland taste. Queen Anne's Lace - Also known as Wild Carrot and Bishop's Lace. It is the original carrot, from which modern cultivars were developed, and it is edible with a light carrot flavor. The flowers are small and white, and bloom in a lacy, flat-topped cluster. Great in salads.
NOTE: The problem is, it is closely related to, and looks almost
exactly like another wild plant,
Wild or Poison Hemlock, which often grows profusely
in similar habitats, and is said to be the most poisonous plant native to
the United States. The best way to differentiate between the two plants
is to remember that Queen Anne's Lace has a hairy stem, while the stems of
Wild Hemlock are smooth and hairless and hollow with purple spots. Radish Flowers - Depending on the variety, flowers may be pink, white or yellow, and will have a distinctive, spicy bite (has a radish flavor). Best used in salads.
Safflower - Its dried flowers, Mexican saffron, are used as a food colorant in place of the more aromatic and expensive Spanish saffron.
Sage -
The
flowers are violet-blue, pink or white up to 1 3/8 inches long, small, tubelike, clustered
together in whorls along the stem tops. Flowers
have a subtler sage taste than the leaves and can be used in salads and as a garnish.
Flowers are a delicious companion to many foods including beans, corn dishes, sauteed or
stuffed mushrooms, or pesto sauce. Scarlet Runner Beans - Bean pods toughen as they age, so make use of young pods as well as flowers. Please note: Sweet Pea flowers are not edible.
Scented
Geraniums -
The flower flavor generally corresponds to the variety. For
example, a lemon-scented geranium would have lemon-scented flowers. They come in
fragrances from citrus and spice to fruits and flowers, and usually in colors of pinks and
pastels. Sprinkle them over desserts and in refreshing drinks or freeze in ice cubes.
NOTE: Citronelle variety may not be edible.
Squash Blossoms
- Squash and pumpkin blossoms are edible and taste mildly of raw squash. Prepare the
blossoms by washing and trimming the stems and remove the stamens.
Sweet
Woodruff -
The flower flavor is sweet and grassy with a hint of nutty, vanilla
flavor. NOTE: Can have a blood thinning effect if eaten in
large amounts Tuberous Begonia - NOTE: Only Hybrids are edible. The petals of the tuberous begonias are edible. Their bright colors and sour, fruity taste bring flavor and beauty to any summer salad. Begonia blossoms have a delicious citrus sour taste and a juicy crunch. The petals are used as a garnish and in salads. Stems, also, can be used in place of rhubarb. The flowers and stems contain oxalic acid and should not be consumed by individuals suffering from gout, kidney stones, or rheumatism. Tulip Petals - Flavor varies from tulip to tulip, but generally the petals taste like sweet lettuce, fresh baby peas, or a cucumber-like texture and flavor. NOTE: Some people have had strong allergic reactions to them. If touching them causes a rash, numbness etc. Don't eat them! Don't eat the bulbs ever.
Yucca Petals
- The white Yucca flower is crunchy with a mildly sweet taste (a hint of artichoke).
in the spring, they can be used in salads and as a garnish. |
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Day
Lilies -
Slightly sweet with a mild vegetable flavor, like sweet lettuce or melon. Their flavor is
a combination of asparagus and zucchini. Chewable consistency. Some people think that different colored blossoms
have different flavors. To use the surprisingly sweet petals in desserts, cut them away
from the bitter white base of the flower. Also great to stuff like squash blossoms.
Flowers look beautiful on composed salad platters or crowning a frosted cake. Sprinkle the
large petals in a spring salad. In the spring, gather shoots two or three inches tall and
use as a substitute for asparagus.
NOTE: Many Lilies contain alkaloids and are NOT edible. Day
Lilies may act as a diuretic or laxative;
eat in moderation
Roses -
Flavors
depend on type, color, and soil conditions. Flavor reminiscent of strawberries and green
apples. Sweet, with subtle undertones ranging from fruit to mint to spice. All roses are
edible, with the flavor being more pronounced in the darker varieties. In miniature
varieties can garnish ice cream and desserts, or larger petals can be sprinkled on
desserts or salads. Freeze them in ice cubes and float them in punches also. Petals used
in syrups, jellies, perfumed butters and sweet spreads.
NOTE: Be sure to remove the bitter white portion of the petals