Please Eat The Daisies

THE FRAGRANCE and beauty of flowers that we enjoy in the garden can be just as enticing when brought to the kitchen. Like herbs, flowers hold the essential oils of plants that will impart unique flavors to foods – sometimes it will be a delicate brush of sweetness or a spirited bite of pepper. The cool, slippery petals can add a crunch of texture and a panorama of color, and the perfume that freshly opened buds will add to your dishes make these curiosities worth trying.

The idea of cooking with flowers is both modern and ancient. For centuries, flowers have been dried, candied, pickled and stewed in cuisines all over the world. The Chinese roasted day lilies, the Greeks added rose water to baklava and the Turks discovered the secret of saffron, the world’s most expensive spice, in the stamen of crocuses. English women colored stews with marigolds and flavored desserts with rose water and lavender. In America, the use of flowers in cookery died out only in the last century.

The recent advance of the new American cuisine, which promotes the use of American foods with an experimental eye toward classic recipes, has young-hearted cooks again experimenting with flowers. Chefs in restaurants on both coasts, and now in Dallas, are adding rose water to sorbets and stuffing zucchini blossoms and mousses to produce surprising flavor and texture combinations.

“American cooking has been so basic for so many years,” says Dean Fearing, the popular and daring chef at Agnew’s. “I use flowers because they are unique and add flavor that is more delicate than many herbs.”

Fearing, along with some of the other French chefs in Dallas, also likes to use flowers as a garnish to enhance the natural beauty of food. Fearing places daisies to the side of fish entrees; Claude Ferracci of the French Room decorates consomme’s with rose petals; and Patrick Taylor from L’Ambiance garnishes entr坢es with his favorite side dish: saut坢ed zucchini blossoms.

Still, finding flowers on one’s dinner plate is a rarity in Dallas restaurants. Even if they could order the bushels of blossoms that would be required, only a few establishments could afford the costly ingredients.

But these disadvantages are the advantages for the home cook, however. For a dinner salad, you will need only a handful of nasturtium petals rather than a crateful. And you can be assured of a reasonable price, since most varieties can easily be pulled from an abandoned hedgegrove or grown in your backyard.

Growing your own flowers is also the safest way to obtain them. Since it is essential to avoid those flowers that have been sprayed with pesticides or other chemicals, or ones that have been artificially colored, most florists are off-limits. Besides, the old-fashioned varieties of flowers that you can grow at home have more flavor, tenderness and fragrance than many new hybrids bred for show. If you do use commercially grown flowers, be sure to ask if they have been sprayed, and avoid them if they have.

When choosing flowers, pick those unblemished blossoms that are the newest, as older blossoms will be tough and acrid-tasting. Pick flowers during the cool of the day, either morning or evening, when the plants’ oils and perfumes are at their peak. Remember that the more fragrant the flower, the more flavor it will hold. Immediately wash them under a delicate spray of ice-cold water, allow them to dry, and refrigerate them loosely wrapped in paper towels and a plastic bag until you are ready to use them (within 24 hours). Before use, snip off the white or pale green part of the petal that attaches to the stem to avoid a bitter taste.

Remember, every pretty flower may not be safe to eat. Side effects from indiscriminate nibbling may range from mild indigestion to death. Flowers to avoid include lantana, azalea, Carolina jasmine, buttercup, larkspur, digitalis, hydrangea, iris, daffodil, wisteria, lily of the valley and tomato blossoms.

If you question the edibility of a flower not mentioned, call the Galveston Poison Control Center at (713) 654-1701 for information.

The following list details many flowers that are easily available in the Dallas area and are proven safe and delicious to eat.

Carnation: These sweet blossoms have been a favorite since Chaucer’s time. Their clovelike perfume and flavor add distinction to syrups, wines, vinegars, strawberry jam and muffins, and they produce a fragrant butter. Carnations are still used to flavor the liqueur Chartreuse.

For the best flavor, choose pinks, clove pinks, Wee Willy or Dianthus rather than garden-variety or greenhouse carnations. Pull the petals off the stem and discard the stem before using.

Chrysanthemum: These flowers have been a culinary treasure of the Orient for more than 1,000 years. A member of the same family as dandelions, daisies and asters, mums provide a similar aromatic and piquant flavor to salads as well as color to soups and chowders. For use in salads, the petals may be used raw or blanched for one second and immediately chilled and dried before using. Add to soups immediately before serving, since overcooking leaves the petals bitter and soggy.

Herb Blossoms: The array of herbs that produce flavorful flowers is plentiful: Chives, dill, thyme, borage, garlic, sage, fennel, yucca and chamomile all have delicate flowers that mimic the flavor of the leaves and stems of those plants. All herb blossoms are perfect additions to salads or last-minute drop-ins to soups. They may also be dried to produce aromatic herbal teas. (For more information, call Herb Valley at 498-6362.)

Lily (Day Lily or Tiger Lily): Whether or not the Chinese are correct in believing that day lilies quiet the heart, reduce worry and benefit the mind, these fragrant flowers have a number of uses in the kitchen. Their sweet limelike aroma and bean-like flavor make them an interesting accompaniment to egg or meat dishes, or use them chopped into fruit cake or delicately fried whole in tempura batter.

While many other flowers are best when only the petals are eaten, the entire lily, including the stamen and pistil, may be used. Day lilies are sweetest on the day of blossoming; after that, they become bitter-tasting and limp.

Marigold: A sprinkling of chopped marigold petals will add life to everything from scrambled eggs to salads. Its golden hue offers a convincing substitute for saffron; for centuries it has been an important coloring ingredient in rice, breads, stews and even in Dutch cheeses.

Choose calendula, or pot marigold, for its superior flavor over African or French varieties of marigold. Pull the petals off the flower base en masse to use.

Another useful variety is the Mexican marigold. Its foliage and flowers can be substituted for French tarragon when that herb is scarce. It can be ordered from Herb Valley.

Nasturtium: This is a favorite among those who have cooked with flowers before. Its vivid orange petals add sensual beauty to green salads or as a garnish in soups, and its peppery, watercresslike flavor stands up well to stronger-flavored foods. Nasturtiums are a natural addition to spinach salad and make as tasty a tea sandwich as does watercress.

The petals are best served raw, as cooking leaves them bitter.

Rose: The best-loved of all the edible flowers is the fragrant and luxurious rose. Its sweet perfume can be infused into many foods with the simple addition of a handful of petals to a simmering syrup or batter. It is delicious in cakes, crepes, puddings, ice creams, fruit desserts, pastries, syrups and butters, and a few petals dropped into a glass of wine or lemonade produces a fragrant drink.

Choose the darkest colored petals for the best fragrance and flavor. Such old-fashioned varieties as Peace, Sweet Surrender, Love or Lady Banks will be among the most fragrant varieties.

Squash: When batter-fried or roasted, the just-opened blossoms of zucchini and yellow squash make a good accompaniment to savory dishes. The flavor of this Provencal specialty is a bit like the squash itself, with a hint of sweetness. The crisply fried exterior and silky interior produces a dish that is beautiful to look at and fun to eat.

Violets: These delicate spring flowers are best known to confectioners in their candied version, but they are even more delightful used raw in salads, as a garnish for canap坢s or cakes or infused into syrups and honeys.

Choose Viola Odorata, a sweet violet with highly fragrant and sweet-tasting qualities. The violet’s cousin, the pansy, is even more beautiful to use as a garnish, but most of its flavor and fragrance have been bred away.



The following are some tested recipes

for you to try:

Garden Salad with Flower Blossoms

2 heads of bibb or Boston lettuce Choose from the following: thyme, chive, oregano or other herb blossoms nasturtium petals and leaves marigold petals, pinks or Sweet William tiger lily or day lily buds; whole or chopped violets

Clean the flowers and lettuces, dry well, and chill until serving time. Arrange lettuce leaves in a salad bowl to resemble a large head of lettuce. Tuck the blossoms between the lettuces, and sprinkle small, colorful petals over the top. Serve with an herb vinaigrette.



Chilled Cucumber Soup with Dill Blossoms

2 cucumbers, peeled and chopped

1 cup water

1 cup plain yogurt

1/2 to 1 avocado

4 tablespoons dill flowers

lemon juice to taste (optional)

cucumber slices and dill blossoms for garnish

Add all ingredients together in a bowl, a food processor or blender, and process until it is the consistency of a puree. If you desire a thicker soup, add more avocado; for a thinner soup, add water. Chill overnight. To serve, ladle into bowls and garnish each bowl with a fluted cucumber slice and a dill blossom.



Sea Scallops with Rosewater

(from Laurel’s restaurant, Sheraton Park Central Hotel)

4 large sea scallops cut horizontally in half

1 1/2 ounces reduced heavy cream (a little more than two tablespoons)

1 teaspoon rose water

1 dash white wine salt to taste

1 red rosebud

1 yellow rose petal

1 mint leaf

Poach cut scallops in cream, adding the outside red rose petals and the dash of white wine.

Arrange scallops on a plate and adjust the consistency of the sauce. Add the rose water to the sauce (do not add it before, or its delicate flavor will evaporate). Spoon the sauce over the scallops, and decorate the plate with the rose bud, the yellow rose petal and the mint leaf.



Fleurs de Courgettes Farcies

(stuffed zucchini flowers) from Calluaud’s

restaurant)

1 lb. ground lamb meat

1 small onion, chopped and saut坢ed

5 garlic cloves, finely chopped

5 leaves fresh basil, finely chopped

2 tablespoons freshly choppedparsley

5 tablespoons cooked rice

2 small zucchini, diced and saut坢ed 1 egg

salt and pepper

fresh tomato sauce

Parmesan cheese, freshly grated1

16 zucchini blossoms

Mix the first nine ingredients together in a bowl. Stuff each zucchini blossom with a bit of the mixture and place the blossoms in a buttered baking dish. Bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees. To serve, top them with a tomato sauce and Parmesan cheese.



Roast Pheasant with Thyme Blossom Sauce

(from Agnew’s restaurant)

1 2-1b. pheasant

2tablespoons honey, any kind

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

8 or more thyme blossoms

1 pear, peeled, seeded and diced

2 cups chicken stock

3 tablespoons butter, cut into smallpieces

additional thyme blossoms for garnish

Clip wings of the pheasant to the knuckles that join at the breast, and remove. Lift skin from tail-end and remove the wishbone. Salt and pepper the bird inside and outside.

Heat the oil in a large saut坢 pan, and brown the bird on one side for about 4 minutes. Flip over and brown the other side for just 30 seconds, and place the pan in a preheated oven (375 degrees). Roast for 10 minutes. Turn the bird up on its back so juices will run down over the breast. Continue to roast for 10 minutes for medium-rare meat (roast 5 minutes longer on each side for more well-done meat).

Remove the pan from the oven and place the bird on a plate and keep warm. Before serving, slice the breast meat on the bias and remove the bones from the thighs.

Remove most of the pan grease, add the honey and place the pan over heat. Deglaze by scraping up the bits of meat, and allow the honey to caramelize. Add the thyme blossoms and diced pear and allow to cook until browned. Add the chicken stock and cook until the sauce is reduced by half. Whisk in the butter.

Strain fat from the sauce. Spoon the sauce onto two serving plates and lay the meat on top of the sauce. Garnish with additional thyme blossoms.

An equally delicious adaptation of this recipe would be to add two cups of Cabernet Sauvignon to the reduced chicken stock and allow the sauce to reduce again before serving.



Rose Sherbet

(from Blom’s restaurant, Westin Hotel) Makes 5 servings

4 1/4 cups water

1 cup sugar

the juice of 1/2 lemon

1 to 2 teaspoons rose water

3/4 cup Dry Sack sherry

1 egg white, beaten until just foamy



Combine sugar and water and heat to the boiling point in a heavy saucepan. Allow to cool. Add the rose water, lemon juice and sherry. Place in an ice cream freezer or sorbet machine and freeze until slightly frozen -about halfway through the freezing process. Add the beaten egg white and continue to freeze until finished.



Honey Ice Cream with Plum Blossoms (adapted from the Chez Panisse Menu Cookbook)

4 cups whipping cream

1/2 cup strong-flavored honey (thyme, heather or tupelo)

5 egg yolks

a handful of plum blossoms (or other fragrant flower, such as rose)

Mix together 3 cups of the cream, 1/2 cup honey and the egg yolks. Cook in a double boiler over very hot water until thickened (about 10 minutes). Add the blossoms and cook for a couple more minutes. Strain the mixture to remove the blossoms, and stir in 1 cup cream. Cover the mixture and chill completely, then freeze in an ice cream freezer.



Peaches Aswim in Rose Petals

(adapted from Judith Olney’s SummerFood)

the petals from 10 or 12 highly scented roses

1 rose-geranium leaf

1 1/2 cups sugar

3 cups water

the juice of 1 lemon

1/2 vanilla bean

10 large firm peaches, peeled and halved

1/2 cup raspberry puree

extra rose petals for garnish

Tie rose petals and rose-geranium leaf in a spice bag made from cheesecloth. Prepare a simple syrup from the sugar and water by heating the two together. Add the spice bag and simmer for 5 minutes; add the lemon juice and vanilla bean and steep for 15 minutes. Press the juices from the spice bag to extract its flavor and remove, then remove the vanilla bean.

Add the prepared peach halves to the syrup and simmer until the peaches are tender (about 20 minutes). Allow them to cool in the syrup to infuse them with flavor, then chill.

To serve, place the peaches in a bowl.Add the syrup to the raspberry puree andpour over the peaches. Scatter additionalrose petals over the top.