Cooking With Edible Flowers

I am unusual in that my whole garden is set aside forremaining sugar in a bowl. Whisk until thick and pale
things that I and my family can eat. And, yes, I doyellow then return the cream and rose petal mix to
have the usual complement of vegetables and fruitthe hob and bring back to just under boiling. Take off
trees. But needing everything in the garden to have athe heat and whisk 1/4 of the warmed mixture into
culinary purpose doesn't mean that it's devoid ofthe egg and sugar mix. Pour the resultant egg mix
colours and flowers. Because you can have a flowerback into the pan and place over low heat. Cook,
garden, as long as those flowers are also edible.stirring constantly, for about 20 minutes, or until the
In spring I have violets, primroses and tulips and inmixture thickens sufficiently to coat the back of a
summer there's a profusion of daylilies, herb flowers,spoon (do not allow to boil).
calendulas, daisies, nasturtiums, roses and many,Strain the mixture into a clean bowl then mix in the
many more. I even go foraging for wild flowers suchrose water and food colouring before pouring into
as elderflowers, blackthorn, hawthorn, dandelion andyour ice cream maker and freeze according to the
deadnettles and linden blossoms. Even suchmanufacturer's instructions. Transfer the finished (but
unpromising wild shrubs as broom and gorse providenot solid) ice cream into a bowl then tear the
edible flower buds and flowers that can be made intoremaining rose petals, mix into the ice cream and fold
wine, used as salad garnishes or can be pickled.to thoroughly combine. Transfer to a freezer-proof
Of course, almost everyone knows of squashcontainer and store in the freezer.
blossoms that can be stuffed, coated in batter andMushroom and Zucchini Flower Soup
deep fried. And many have used flowers as garnishesIngredients:
for desserts and salads, but the culinary uses of3 generous handfuls of zucchini flowers
flowers is much broader than this, as I will140g fresh sweetcorn, sliced from the cob
demonstrated with the two recipes below:1/2 onion, minced
Rose Petal and Marigold Ice Cream2 garlic cloves, minced
In this recipe the rose petals provide the main2 tomatoes, blanched, peeled and crushed
flavouring for the egg-based custard but the marigold250g fresh mushrooms
flowers add a rich golden colour that makes this ice2l chicken stock
cream unique.3 tbsp Mexican-style beer
Ingredients:60ml oilsalt and freshly-ground black pepper, to taste
300ml rose petals (lightly-packed) from fragrant or1 leafy stem of epazote (if available) (or a mix of
wild rosessavory, oregano and basil), chopped
120ml milk100g soft cheese, sliced
850ml double creamMethod:
200g granulated sugarHeat the oil in a pan and use to fry the onion and
6 egg yolksgarlic for about 3 minutes. Add the crushed tomatoes
60ml rose waterpetals from 3 heads of marigoldsand when well fried add the stock, courgette
Method:flowers, sweetcorn and mushrooms. Bring the
Remove the white bases of the rose petals (thesemixture to a boil and cook for 20 minutes.
can be bitter) then wash in cold water and pat dry.Add the herbs and season to taste before adding
Place 2/3 of the petals in a heavy, non-reactivethe beer. Heat through then divide between warmed
saucepan along with the milk, cream, marigold petalssoup bowls and serve. Accompany with slices of
and half the sugar. Place over medium heat and bringfresh, soft, cheese.
to just under the boiling point. Take off the heat andI hope you have enjoyed these flower-based recipes
set aside to infuse for 30 minutes.and are now keen to learn more about the use of
After this time beat together the egg yolks and theedible flowers in cookery.