Nothing holds the promise of life more than the colorful young blooms bursting with a vigor that only spring can deliver.

We enjoy flowers as cuttings and sometimes for their fragrance, but few of us realize that there are a number of edible blossoms that can do more than grace our centerpiece.

Many flowers are suitable for garnishing salads and soups and can be added to a rice dish or casserole or stuffed for a colorful and unique appetizer.

Edible flowers were especially popular in Victorian times and these days can be found at farmers markets and at the most high end of restaurants.

Here are a few edible flowers and some suggestions for their use. Use them sparingly as a garnish until you become familiar with which are sweet, spicy or pungent.

Note: Please research well any flower, which may not be listed here. Do not eat flowers from the florist, or those that have been sprayed with pesticides or picked by the roadside. Daphne is one of a number of fragrant flowers that are toxic.

Edible Blossoms

• Bee Balm
• Begonia
• Borage
• Calendula
• Carnation
• Chamomile
• Chicory
• Clover
• Dandelion
• Day Lily
• Elder
• Hibiscus
• Hollyhock
• Jasmine
• Lavender
• Lilac
• Mullein
• Mustard
• Nasturtium
• Onion, chive or garlic blossoms
• Orange (or other citrus blossoms)
• Pansy
• Peony
• Rose Petals
• Viola (Johnny jump-up’s)
• Violets

Flowers from any culinary herb such as basil, sage, rosemary, oregano, mint, catnip and lemon verbena, among others are edible. Many flowers from fruit trees or vegetables are also edible.

Suggestions:

Add 2 to 3 tablespoons of lavender (Lavandula officinalis) blossoms, fresh or dried to a sugar cookie recipe.

Press fresh geranium blossoms (Pelargonium graveolens) onto the top of cake batter or muffins before baking.

Calendula petals (Calendula officinalis) removed from the calyx are suitable in soup stocks, rice dishes or fresh in salads.

Larger flowers such as tulips, squash blossoms, nasturtiums or crocus can be stuffed with mixtures such as guacamole or bean dip.

For a sweet treat, stuff these blossoms with strawberries and tofu sour cream, blueberries with soy cream cheese, honey and walnuts.

Many smaller flowers such as borage can be frozen into ice cubes for a festive addition to iced teas.

Flower Sushi
Use a large flower such as squash blossom, hollyhock or hibiscus and stuff the center with sushi rice, avocado and cucumber. Garnish with pickled ginger and dip in soy sauce and wasabi.

Cold Infusions of Fragrant Flowers
Fragrant flowers such as bundles of lilac make a wonderful beverage as a cold infused tea. Simply put fully blossomed lilacs into a large pitcher, fill with water and place in the refrigerator. It is ready to drink in several hours and can be refilled once. Use within 2 days for optimal freshness and flavor.

Resources:
Barash, Cathy Wilkinson. Edible Flowers from Garden to Palate. Golden: Fulcrum Publishing, 1993.
Brown, Kathy. Flowerpower. New York: Anness Publishing Limited, 2000.
Creasy, Rosalind. The Edible Flower Garden. Boston: Periplus Editions. 1999.
Mead, Chris and Emelie Tolley. A potpourri of Pansies. New York: Clarkson Potter Publishers, 1993.
Peterson, Lee Allen, et al. A Field Guide to Edible Wild Plants: Eastern and central North America (Peterson Field Guide). New York: Houghton Mifflin. 1977.
Strowbridge, Cynthia and Francesca Tillona. A Feast of Flowers. New York: Funk & Wagnalls, 1969.

Mindy Green is a nationally recognized authority on botanicals and co-author of Aromatherapy, A Complete Guide to the Healing Art, 2009. Facebook Mindy

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