Trendier kitchens are producing dishes that blossom with flavor

By Sandra Lee Larsen

“He is happiest, who hath power to gather wisdom from a flower.” - Mary Howitt

One of the most imaginative ways to enjoy our flowers is to prepare recipes that put the bite on flower power.

Think Claude Monet's “Poppy Field of Argenteuil.” He brought his dappled green meadow canvas alive with flares of red-orange. Artistic-minded cooks expand their culinary palettes with the unexpected color, texture, and taste of edible flowers. The concept reaches from Victorians, who knew the reward of emphasizing olfactory encounters with a galaxy of taste sensations. It's even gone to the nursery; remember Peter Rabbit being dosed for his upset stomach with a cup of chamomile tea. It's made with chamomile flowers.

Edible flowers can be shredded and used in cold salads, beverages, salad dressings and soups. They can be used whole, filled with savory stuffing, poached, steamed or fried. Small flowers, buds and flower petals can be candied or crystallized, used to create confections or to decorate baked goods.

Steaming flower petals in water (rainwater if you remember to collect it) above a pot of boiling water makes flower infusions. Rose petal infusions have been turned into syrup and jelly. They're used as bases for sorbets, ices and as flavoring for sauces and drinks. To create this nectar, steam petals for an hour; extract them (yes, they'll be limp), then put in fresh flowers, doing it all over again, seven times.

Peddling toward a more visible role, a rose is a rose is a rose, until it is in a salad bowl! Then it becomes an ingredient with alluring color, and delicate flavor. A great way to get acquainted with the flavor, texture and “workability” of edible flowers is to use them in a cold salad. Shred, chop or tear whole flowers or petals into small pieces and toss with cold greens, pasta or rice and shredded vegetables. Go a little further and toss some flower petals into salad dressings, allowing the flavor to infuse before serving.

In addition to being pretty, edible flowers add fiber, traces of vitamins and minerals to meals. And they're all low in fat and sodium. Deep orange and red petals may contain beta carotene and potassium. Rose petals, hips and hibiscus kick the vitamins up a notch. Chrysanthemums contain natural chemicals thought to soothe sore throats, and purple cone daisies (aka echinacea) are thought to help bolster the immune system.

From edible flowers 101, it's vital to remember that some flowers are just plain not edible. Not only are they not edible, they can be poisonous. They need to be regarded the same as poisonous mushrooms, for example. Be certain you've identified flowers before nibbling. Flowers from culinary herbs are considered safe; if the leaf is edible as an herb, the flower is also edible.

Herb flowers usually have the same flavor as the herb, just a little subtler. Lavender and chamomile are exceptions to the subtlety rule. They have a stronger flavor than their leaves.

Lavendar

One of our most dazzling summer flowers is the most versatile of edible flowers. They're bright, snappy, and their roasted seeds are in their culinary glory when used as a crust for lamb, giving it a nutty flavor. If you've ever breathed in the fragrant and relaxing scent of lavender in bloom, then you understand why lavender, the symbol of ‘devotion,' is perhaps the most popular of herbal scents. Lavender's talent doesn't stop there. It makes a wonderful culinary additive.

Lately, lavender's been showing up in packets of dried herbs from Provence. There's worse than having grilled lamb flavored with the oily acrid scent of lavender along with the highly fragrant thyme, rosemary, and oregano that carpet the dry hills of Provence. In Arabella Boxer's wonderful treatise, The Herb Book , she writes of lavender flavored grape jelly, and fig preserves with lavender and pine nuts.

Go ahead and get snippy! While the flowers are open and fresh, trim them close to the bud. As an alternative, dried lavender blossoms can be purchased at specialized markets. Other lavender cooking ideas include:

For vinegar, fill a bottle with equal amounts of lavender flowers and rosemary sprigs, packing loosely. Add warmed white vinegar and cover, allowing it to steep for at least a couple of weeks. Strain, and use it as you would regular vinegar.

Tuck some blossoms in with sugar to add a delicate scent. Don't forget to add some dried lavender to your Herbs de Provence, if it is not already included in your herbal mix.

Nasturtium

Biting into a nasturtium brings a sweet mild flavor that gives way to a spicy bite from the throat of the blossom. A plate spread with thinly sliced seared salmon becomes a canvas for colorful nasturtiums. Alan Tardi of Manhattan's Follonico plundered his garden to create his Petal-Printed Pasta. The pansy and nasturtium petals aren't sprinkled at random – they're carefully pressed between paper-thin sheets of pasta dough to create a floral fabric. “It's almost like pressing flowers between the pages of a book,” he says. “But the great thing is that as you're eating it you can taste their subtle flavors.”

Tardi also said, “…if you're in a hurry, you can throw flowers into a salad or just drop them onto the plate to brighten it up. Why not? Food in summer should seem light, quick, spontaneous.”

Day lilies provide more food flower power. Small buds can be stir-fried, and once the flowers open, the petals also can be eaten. Calendula or pot marigold is a poor man's saffron. Their petals can be served on a cheese spread, with crackers. A lily bulb julienne with avocado, zucchini blossoms, lotus root – even cauliflower, the flower that isn't, is a dainty dish to set before a king – or queen.

Crystallized flowers are another use of small fragrant blossoms. Violets, rose petals and buds, sweet scented geraniums, borage and bergamon are all good candidates for candy. They are a little fussy to make – sort of a Martha Stewart project – but if you are the sort who makes your own wedding cake, then go for the candied flowers!

In savory cooking, perhaps the best loved use of a New World culinary flower is the squash blossom, a big, blousy, yellow-orange flower that can be stuffed, gently poached and sauced, fried as fritters, or simmered into soup. Marigolds, grown in medieval herb gardens to be used as a cure for bronchial problems, can add a lively peppery flavor. Their great tossed into salads or garnishing recipes deserving peppery pop, such as smoked salmon.

If there's an elderberry bush hiding in your garden, somewhere the weed eater missed, let the misunderstood weed grow. When it gets six feet tall, it will begin to make flower umbels. One morning, its snowy fragrant bloom will be as broad and flat as a pancake. That's when it's time to whip up some pancake batter, and bring a dewy flowering umbel into your kitchen. Heat up the pan, pour in the batter. At once, stick the flower upside down into the still-wet pancake. Grab the scissors and quickly snip off the many little stems so when the pancake is ready to turn, you've clipped it down to flip-ability. Finish cooking, serve with a drizzle of pure Vermont maple syrup. You'll be as well fed as a moose in an elderberry bog!

Another sprout disdained by gardeners are dandelions, yet they are dandy to eat! The dandelion's name comes from the French term “dent-de-lion,” meaning “lion's tooth” – so named for its dark-green leaves with pointy, tooth-like edges. Those bitter-tasting leaves are a staple in French country kitchens.

Dandelion

In Russia, the plant is known as “life-elixir,” and its leaves are traditionally steamed and served with sour cream and thinly sliced red onion. Italians like the leaves chopped and sautéed with garlic and olive oil. The English boil them and then toss them with vinegar and salt. There are countless ways to use dandelions, including cooking the buds in butter and using the leaves fresh in salads.

Lurking under suspicion of being a nuisance, almost every part of the dandelion can be consumed, including the blossoms and roots. Only the dried-out puffball of seeds in inedible; that part seems to have been created purely for fun, and of course, for procreation.

Since ancient times the plant has been recognized for its medicinal qualities. Tenth-century Arab physicians called it taraxacon, meaning “ a remedy for disorders.”

It has a potent effect on the solar plexus: The liver is in this area of the body, and one of the dandelion's main constituents, choline, is essential to liver function.

When picking dandelion blossoms, do so in a field that you know hasn't been treated with chemicals. Dig roots with a garden fork on a day when a recent rainfall has softened the ground. Flowers are best picked in the morning, and used as soon as possible. Until use, they can be kept in the fridge in a moist paper towel.

Scented Geraniums

Scratch and sniff scented geraniums. They're all about leaves that reward with delicate aromas, fanciful shapes, and touchable textures. This focus on foliage gives the scenteds little in common with the familiar bedding geranium and its big red flowers. Scented geraniums are rather stingy with their tiny blossoms, but they too are good enough to eat. Many of them are identified by olfactory namesakes: Lemon Meringue, Clove, Gooseberry, Camphor Rose, Apple Cider. An active imagination helps in discerning some of the subtle fragrances. Chocolate Joy, for example, is heavy on the mint with just a suggestion of cocoa's dark richness.

Try finely snipped scented geranium leaves of lemon, chocolate mint, rose, or apple varieties mixed together with equal amounts of coarse sugar. They can be sprinkled over berries or other ripe fruit. Prepare, however, only as much flavored sugar as can be used immediately.

For an all-shook-up experience, try coarse salt (maybe Celtic gray or kosher salt) mixed with equal amounts of snipped rose-apple or lemon-scented geranium leaves. They're a delightful dash for pasta, salads, veggies, grilled poultry, fish, or meat. Again, discard any leftover salt.

Scented geranium leaves lend a delicate flavor to club soda, for a unique ahh…peritif sip. Feeling indulgent? Add a few berries and a slice of nectarine. Try scented geraniums in iced tea too.

For a snip ‘n' spread, mince a handful of leaves from your favorite scented geranium (apple, ginger, or other spicy flavors are good) and blend them into a stick of softened butter. Serve with warm, crusty bread or biscuits. Use within 24 hours.

Many palatable flower varieties, grown without pesticides and chemicals to preserve their edibility, are sold in the produce section. They may seem pricy, but a few go a long way to enhance other foods. If tasty posies are grown at home, identical care is in order. Florist flowers can be harmful if consumed, because of what's added. It's not wise to experiment with varieties not listed in the sidebar, without expert guidance.

Cast off culinary shyness and bring the jewels of the garden into the kitchen, and onto the table. Capitalize on creativity and taste. It's easier than you think, and you'll blossom with pride!

Recipes:

Rose Dessert Sauce:

2/3 cup rose petals, washed and patted dry

1/2 cup white vinegar

1 tsp fresh lemon juice

1/2 cup light corn syrup

1/2 cup sugar

2/3 cup water

Cook's note: Rose sauce may be served warm or cold. Use it on pound cake, fresh fruit, sorbet or ice cream. It will last up to two weeks in the refrigerator.

Procedure:

Add all ingredients to small saucepan and bring to rapid boil. Reduce heat and simmer, stirring 1 minute. Allow for cooling.

Place in plastic or glass container to sit for at least two days to develop flavor.

Dandelion Salad:

Combine 2 parts mesclun greens with 1 part dandelion greens. Add a crumbled hard-boiled egg and some lightly steamed sliced beets. Toss with a favorite salad dressing.

Dandelion-blossom Pancakes:

Combine 1/2 cup whole-wheat flour, 1/2 cup all-purpose flour, 2 teaspoons baking powder, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 2 tablespoons sugar. Add 1 large egg, 1 cup milk and 2 Tablespoons melted butter. Add 1 cup dandelion blossoms and mix well.

Pour batter in small circles onto hot, oiled griddle. Cook until lightly browned on one side, then flip, and repeat. Serve warm with maple syrup, yogurt or jam. Serves 2

Dandelion Vinegar:

Fill a 1 quart wide-mouthed jar with 1 quart loosely packed fresh dandelion leaves. Then fill jar to the top with apple-cider vinegar. Cap, and let sit for six weeks.

Strain through a piece of cheesecloth. Store in refrigerator, and add to salad dressings and other preparations as desired. Keeps for up to two years.

Nasturtium Pasta Salad:

To make cucumber sticks, slice the cucumber into 1/8 inch rounds, stack the rounds and cut into 1/2 inch wide pieces. Rinse and drain the calendula or marigold flowers and then pull off the petals.

3/4 lb dried farfalle (bow tie) pasta

1/3 cup lemon juice

1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil

1 1/2 tsp fresh ground pepper

1 cup crumbled feta cheese (4 oz.)

3/4 cup English cucumber sticks

1/2 cup calendula or marigold petals

3 1/2 cups nasturtium blossoms,

3 1/2 tender nasturtium leaves, rinsed and drained

lettuce leaves, rinsed and drained

salt

Cook pasta until tender to bite, about 10 minutes. Drain, immerse in cold water and drain when cool, about three minutes. In a large bowl, mix lemon juice, oil and pepper. Add pasta, feta and cucumber. Mix and season to taste with salt. Add calendula petals and nasturtium blossoms; mix gently. Line a platter or individual serving plates with the nasturtium leaves. Spoon salad onto the leaves. Serves: 4

Rose Petal Fruit Salad:

Rose flower water is available from liquor stores, Middle Eastern and gourmet markets.

1 1/2 cups rinsed blueberries

3 1/2 cups sliced nectarines

1/4 cup rose petals, rinsed and drained

1/4 tsp rose flower water

salt (optional)

Arrange berries and nectarines on a platter; sprinkle flowers over the fruit. In a small bowl, mix vinegar with rose flower water to taste. Spoon evenly over the salad. Season to taste with salt. Serves: 6

Iced Lavender-Mint Tea Punch:

An absolutely wonderful beverage, sure to win praise from guests, can be easily made as follows.

6 tsp dried mint

6 cups boiling water

1 tablespoon dried lavender blossoms

1 small (1-liter) bottle ginger ale

1 cup white grape juice

Steep the mint for several minutes; then add the lavender blossoms. Allow the tea to cool. Strain, and add ginger ale and grape juice. If available, freeze fresh mint and fresh lavender blossoms in ice cubes, and add to the punch. An added touch is to garnish the glass with a fresh lavender stalk, buds and mint sprigs.

Lavender Scones:

These are a pleasing addition to breakfast or brunch.

2 1/2 cups flour

1/3 cup sugar

1/4 tsp salt

2 eggs, lightly beaten

1/4 tsp baking soda

1/2 cup milk

1/4 tsp baking powder

1 T dried lavender

2/3 stick butter

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. In small saucepan bring milk and lavender flowers to the boiling point; then set aside and cool to lukewarm.

Sift or mix together flour, salt, baking soda and baking powder. Blend in softened butter until mixture resembles coarse cornmeal. Add sugar and then beaten eggs, mixing carefully after each addition. Strain milk to remove lavender, and add to dough. Knead all ingredients together thoroughly. Add flour to achieve pie-dough consistency. Take about one-half of the dough, and place it on floured surface, working in additional flour if necessary. Pat out with the palm of your hands into a 1-inch thick circle (resembling a pie), and cut into triangles of about 1 1/2 inch base. Bake 15 – 18 minutes, or until slightly brown.

These are especially delicious when served with Crème Fraîche and a light flavored fruit jam, preserves or honey.

Honey Lavender Ice Cream:

Recipe available in September 2003 - Gourmet Magazine

RESOURCES:

Edible Flowers: A Kitchen Companion With Recipes , by Kitty Morse – $10.36 -

Flower Recipes, “Dos & Don'ts”:

Candied Flowers:

Dried Edible Lavender Flowers: Penzeys – (800) 741-7787 & Kalustyan's (800) 352-3451

SHEPHERD'S GARDEN SEEDS – 6116 Highway 9, Felton, CA 95018 – (408) 335-6910

Edible Flowers Poster: 24 x 36 in, Item #: 338011 - Price: $12.99 –

HerbThyme Farms: (S. San Francisco) - (650) 952-4372 or , will distribute and offer advice.