Tuesday, May 27, 2014

Organic Edible Flower Dinner, Paradise Farms, Homestead, Fla. Updated

Homestead, Fla.--Paradise Farms' flowers were more than pretty, they were also yummy.  Earlier this year this organic farm held an edible flower dinner that started with a flower infused cocktail hour followed by an edible tour of the property accompanied by unique libations. It was the first dinner of its kind at Paradise Farms, under the ownership of Gabriele Marewski.

Brie cheese, dried fruit cups decorated with edible organic flowers at Dinner
In Paradise Edible Flower Festival, Homestead, Fla.
Copyright 2014 by Helen A Lockey
At each talking point on the tour there was either a wine or a Kombucha (fermented tea) made with farm grown ingredients like oyster mushrooms and ginger flowers.  Guests were encouraged to help themselves to as many edible flowers as they wanted to eat during the farm tour.

Guests eat their way through Paradise Farms' edible flower festival
dinner farm tour, Homestead, Fla.
Copyright 2014 by Helen A Lockey
The most surprising flower stop was at the begonia beds. These succulent pink petalled flowers tasted like lemon juice. The Begonia wine that accompanied this stop had hints of eucalyptus and citrus.

Corvina ceviche with Clitoria (edible blue flower)
leche de tigre, sweet potato, peppers, onion and garlic chips,
prepared by Chef Eric Do, at Dinner in Paradise Edible Flower
Festival, Homestead, Fla.
Copyright 2014 by Helen A Lockey
The tour ended with a glorious sit down dinner in an open air gazebo. Chefs from all around Miami and even one from Washington, D.C. cooked delicious dishes with Paradise Farms grown edible organic flowers.

White asparagus salad served with quail egg and nasturtium flower,
created by Chef Harold Ortiz at Dinner in Paradise Edible Flower
Festival, Homestead, Fla. Copyright 2014 by Helen A Lockey
The culinary celebrity line up consisted of Chef Harold Ortiz (Banquet Chef, Intercontinental Hotel Miami), Chef Alex Feher (Intercontinental Hotel Miami), Chef Eric Do (Toro Toro Miami restaurant), Chef Jose Luis Flores (Richard Sandoval Restaurants) and the culinary students of Johnson & Wales University.

Banana dulce de leche with farm grown roselle hibiscus flower
sauce, rose petals, viola flower and bananas, prepared by Chef Jose
Luis Flores at Dinner in Paradise Edible Flower Festival,
Homestead, Fla. Copyright 2014 by Helen A Lockey
Four courses later, the dessert crafted by pastry Chef Flores, arrived with many ingredients from the farm like bananas, rose petals, roselle (Hibiscus sabdariffa) sauce, and edible viola flowers.

Final thanks and congratulations of Chefs, Sponsors, servers
and Gabriele Marewski at Dinner in Paradise Edible Flower
Festival, Homestead, Fla.
Copyright 2014 by Helen A Lockey
Then it was time to thank all the chefs, their servers, the sponsors, and Gabriele for her wonderful event. And then the night was over.

This dinner cost $165.50 per person before tax.

As of Sept. 2014, Paradise Farms organic is up for sale. It is unknown if the next owner will continue the tradition of farm-to-table dinners.

So we will just have to wait and wish.

1 comment:

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