The Edible Flower Garden
Many of us are working on planning our gardens right now, and we’re also eating at home a lot (except for meals that we’re ording-in to support local small businesses!). We thought it would be fun to share some plants with edible flowers that you can grow at home to add flare to your cooked-at-home meals.
Any time we’re consuming flowers and plants that are not our obvious fruits and veggies, we want to be very sure we’ve identified the correct plant, so always check and double check before adding these things to your plate. After we’ve properly identified our plant, and confirmed no pesticides have been used on them, it’s time to give them a quick rinse and get creative!
Here are a few of our favorite edible flowers…
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Nasturtium is one of the most useful plants you can have in your garden. They are easy to grow, make a big statement with brightly colored flowers, round leaves that resemble lily pads, and trailing vines. Plus, every part of the above-ground plant is edible – leaves, flowers, and seed pods! They are also great for natural pest control. Plant these next to squash, especially, to keep the squash beetles at bay. Nasturtium flowers and leaves make a gorgeous showing in salads and add a peppery flavor.
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Pansies and violets are a popular flower for adding to cakes and baked goods. They can be dried or candied to add a decorative flair to your desserts, but they also look beautiful placed directly onto your dessert with no modifications. Pansies also look lovely in a salad, and can add color and decoration to home made spring rolls as well – just place the pansy face-down on the rice paper before you add filling, and when you roll it up, the pansy will be visible inside the roll.
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Snapdragon may not have as noticeable a flavor as other flowers, but they make a great addition to ice cubes. Place the flower in your ice cube tray and fill with water, then freeze. Any portion of the flower within the water will retain its shape and color, but any part left out might turn brown, so try to submerge the entire flower.
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Rose is a long-time favorite consumable flower. Roses come in many different types of scent, and therefore many different flavors. For a sweeter rose, try the Sugar Moon variety. Rose petals can be used dried or fresh. They can also be dried and used as incense or potpourri, or added fresh from the stem to water for a relaxing bath.
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Begonia is one of the most surprising edible flowers. Tuberous Begonias (Begonia X tuberosa) have a taste similar to sour citrus candy! This author keeps begonias on her patio all summer long and snacks on them! Just pluck the petal off of the flower and nibble away for a delicious treat that’s sugar-free.
Looking for ideas on how to use these flowers? Check out our Pinterest board called “Projects and Recipes”!
