The famous expression is, “Stop and smell the roses.” Well these days more and more people and especially chefs are stopping and eating the roses and other flowers. It is surprising how many flowers are edible. There are the more known varieties like lavender (for tea), nasturtiums (for salads), violets (candied for cakes), hibiscus (tea, wine) and orange blossoms (for syrups).
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| Spicy, very edible, nasturtiums Copyright 2019 by Helen A Lockey |
Flowers hold the beginnings of life. Their nectar draws in insects that help pollinate the flower, which then leads to the growth of some type of fruit. The flowers are often full of scent that can be experienced either in the fresh form, or candied, or fermented, or frozen.
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| Yellow mustard flowers and pods Copyright 2019 by Helen A Lockey |
Some lesser known, yet still very delicious are in the brassica family (cabbage). Here broccoli and cauliflower stand out because they are simply unopened flower buds. Mustards are another part of this family and often produce fiery tasting, yellow blossoms and spicy seedpods.
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| Florida hops flower on the vine Copyright 2019 by Helen A Lockey |
The there are roses, not all are edible. There are also orchids, and again not all are edible. Citrus flowers are edible. Start fruit (carambola) flowers are edible. Papaya flowers are edible. If you are a fan of beer, the hops that went in to sanitize and flavor your beer are flowers too.
One rule of thumb with eating all flowers: know where they are from. Make sure if they are bought or foraged that they have not been sprayed with any chemicals. And if you are unsure how your body will react, just take a very tiny bite, wait one hour, and if you are not sick, eat some more.
And remember you can stop and smell the roses (flowers) but it’s also wonderful to stop and nibble them.
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