Welcome to this week’s edition of edible flowers…I watch all…well most of the cooking programmes…I love Masterchef and Great British Menu and I am in awe of the beautiful presentation of the food if I can ever-present food that resembles those dishes just a little then I will be a happy bunny…Whatever the month there will be a plant or tree that flowers obviously not all edible or palatable but I am trying to find flowers in season pretty much like fruit and vegetable although, of course, that will also depend on where you hail from around the globe…

Lots of the FB and Instagram posts portray such beautiful food often adorned with pretty flowers which seems to be something of the norm now…BUT….. DO YOU KNOW WHAT THOSE PRETTY FLOWERS ARE????

DO YOU ASSUME BECAUSE THEY ARE IN A DISH THAT THEY ARE EDIBLE???… If foraging or picking flowers from your or a friend’s garden check that not only are they edible but palatable and that pesticides haven’t been used…

Elder Flowers…

Elder flowers…it’s not only the berries that are edible and medicinal but the flowers of the elder are too…As an immune stimulator, elderflower tea can provide soothing relief for acute colds…If you don’t have any elder plants in your yard don’t worry! Just look for wild ones on the edges of streams, ponds, or along roadside edges such as fences or roads…and remember if you plan to use the berries then be selective in the flowers you pick and of course leave some for the birds and the bees.

For relief from colds or flu, pour boiling water over fresh or dried flowers and steep them in a covered container for 10 minutes. Mix in a spoonful of local honey and feel those pesky symptoms ease as you breathe in this steamy sweet beverage.

To make a cordial, boil the flowers for at least 5 minutes, strain, and add equal parts sugar to the remaining volume of water. Including a splash of lemon juice and citric acid will help preserve the cordial and add a pleasant tartness…this concentrated syrup can be added to drinks or even mixed into recipes such as cakes and pancakes…

Use the cordial and/or dried flowers in cakes, tarts, jams, pies, or pancakes! The blossoms are great when balanced with tart fruits such as rhubarb. They are also delightful baked with strawberries and raspberries…or steep the crushed herb in vinegar for about a month. Use your vinegar of choice. Apple cider, white wine, or champagne are all great options. Strain and use in salad dressings or sauces…it really is a versatile and very pretty little flower…

I vaguely remember my father making wine but cannot remember if he used the berries or the flowers or a mix of both all I can remember is my father and Mr Hoad next door got the giggles when they sampled the wine and my mother was none too pleased when they came wobbling and giggling down the garden path from their man cave…Have you made elderflower wine?

Basil…

I use a couple of different types of basil in my kitchen and I always add a few of the flowers to a stir fry as I find the flavour is more concentrated in the flowers…especially in the Thai basil…although I find the flowers of European basil slightly milder they are lovely sprinkled in salads and look so pretty…match them with ingredients that you would generally use basil in like pasta, cheeses or fresh fruit or platters of meat or vegetables it is also lovely infused in red or white wine vinegar…

To make the vinegar…Place freshly snipped basil flowers into a clean glass jar and cover them with red or white wine vinegar. You can add more basil flowers to the jar as you have them, along with more vinegar to cover. Keep the jar covered in between basil additions.

Once the jar is full, leave it to infuse for at least a week.

Strain out the basil flowers (you can compost or discard them).

Transfer the vinegar to a clean glass jar or cruet, and cap or cork tightly…or make yourself a nice cup of tea by simply adding freshly cut basil flowers to a teacup or pot of boiling water, and let steep for several minutes. Strain the tea through a tea strainer or standard kitchen strainer, and enjoy!

Pink Mempat(Phak tui)

I came across these beautiful flowers the other day having not seen them before here but my Thai friends came to my rescue and educated me…unique to Southeast Asia locally the young leaves of the Mempat tree are consumed as food and its flowers were used as an indication for our local-fishermen to know when to fish in the month of February or the Chinese New Year…interesting I love local tales…my daughter in law uses them when she makes soups as they come from a small tree the stems are woody so the flowers and leaves are picked from the stems…and added to the soup or eaten raw with a spicy dip… one of my Thai friends got quite excited when she saw me carrying my wares on the way back from the market I got the feeling that they are not seen often here and told me she makes larb which is a spicy meat-based dish with them …It’s always interesting when I find something and listen to all the ways of using some of my finds…I gave them to my daughter-in-law to take home and am awaiting the pictures and the recipe for the soup she made…

That’s all for today for edible flowers… thank you for visiting as I know it’s a busy time of year and as always I look forward to your comments x