| |
| |
|
Landscaping & Gardening Information |
|
|
|
Edible Flowers in Your Garden
Flowers can be an integral part of cooking. While most of us are aware that violets can be candied and nasturtiums can be eaten in salads, there's a bounty of flower varieties that are both edible and delicious. Satisfying Your Sweet Tooth with Flowers Violets are not the only flower that can be candied. Many spring flowers with small, delicate blossoms have a sweet, somewhat spicy flavor that is enhanced by dipping them in sugar. It goes without saying that any flowers that you gather for eating should have been grown without the use of pesticide - by growing them yourself, you can be sure that they're untreated. A Candy Flower Garden that blooms throughout the summer can include: Violets - Purple, blue or white, violets are among the first flowers to bloom in the spring. They spread easily, and grow happily when transplanted into a garden bed - and you do want to confine them to a bed unless you love the look of a full carpet of blooms spreading across your lawn. Pansies - A relative of violets, pansies are just as delicately flavored and can be used as a substitute in recipes that call for violets. They make beautiful border flowers to boot. Angelica - These delicate, lacy white flowers can be sprinkled in salads - but the stems and shoots make a delicious traditional candy that tastes a bit like licorice with a hint of mint. Roses - Candied rose petals and rose syrup were mainstays in Victorian cooking. Sweet delicately flavored rose syrup gives baklava its characteristic flavor, and is a perfect foil for cardamom in Indian recipes. To candy flowers from your garden: Violets and pansies can be candied whole. Roses should be separated into petals. Most recipes for candied flowers call for the use of raw egg whites. Using a confectioner's powdered egg white instead reduces risk of salmonella. Mix powdered egg white according to package directions (equivalent of one egg white). Spread a cup of superfine sugar in a flat bottomed pan. Carefully dip each flower into the egg white, then press into the sugar. Use a fork to gently turn the flower so that all surfaces of the petals are covered. Lift out of sugar and lay on a screen or drying rack till completely dry. Apple and cherry blossoms can also be candied the same way. A Soup, Salad and Savory Flower Garden Early summer squash blossoms may be dipped in egg and flour, then fried in olive oil with garlic. The blossoms have a sweet, nutty flavor that is like nothing else. Other garden flowers that are delicious in soups and salads include: Borage - Like the leaves, borage flowers are delicious in salads and cold soups. They have a cool, cucumber-like taste that translates well from flower garden to kitchen table. Carnations - The flavor is as spicy as the scent. Carefully separate the petals from the bitter white of the flower's base and sprinkle in salads for a surprising touch of color and spice. Daylilies - Like squash blossoms, day lilies have a mildly sweet, nutty flavor that many people think varies by color. Dredged in flour and dipped in egg, fried daylilies are quite succulent and unique in flavor. These are just a small sampling of the many edible flowers from your garden. Be careful in your taste-testing. If you are not sure if a flower is edible, do not eat it. Ed Rooney is the creator of http://www.garden-helper.com - an online gardening resource for gardeners to learn, share, plan, and shop.
MORE RESOURCES:
Landscaping-Gardening - Google News |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Ship Ahoy! The Nautical Touch in Your Outdoor Living Space Would you rather be sailing or are you strictly a shore bird? Whether you're land-locked or seaside, you can create a nautical look in your outdoor living space by following a few easy principles. You'll find that even landlubbers can answer the siren song of the sea. Compost YES, Epsom Salts NO You'll often hear garden writers recommending the use of Epsom salts in the garden as a general rule. First off, I'm not one of those writers. Hydroponics Gardening - An Introduction To Hydroponics Gardening For Beginners The Basics of Hydroponics Gardening.What is hydroponics gardening?Derived from the Latin Hydro, meaning water and Geoponics, meaning the study of agriculture, hydroponics is the science of growing plants using a solution of suitable nutrients instead of soil. Orchid Care - What The Leaves Tell Us Orchid Care Leaves Tell Us About Orchid HealthOver the past 20 years the orchid supply has become almost limitless. All in all orchid care leaves is becoming more important to all the orchid lovers. Backyard Bird--The Catbird It's quiet now.Gone is the constant chatter, whistles and meowing sounds as you jump from branch to branch safeguarding your territory against all trespassers. Slugging It Out In The Trenches In an effort to introduce a shaft of sunlight into a particularly gloomy conversation, I recently asked a gardening acquaintance of mine to explain the difference between a slug and a snail.For the next twelve minutes and seven seconds, this horticultural monomaniac held forth on the most minute and inconsequential differences between gastropod molluscs with rudimentary or no shells and gastropod molluscs with well developed spiral or whorled shells. Hydroponics Gardening - An Introduction To Hydroponics Gardening For Beginners (Part 3) Lighting THE BASICS OF HYDROPONICS.An Introduction To Indoor Plant Grow Lights. How To Build A Waterfall The number one, most asked question that I receive about water features is "How do I build a waterfall?"The first advice I give is to visit natural waterfalls or at least look at photos. Don't try to memorize just how they look. Hand Feeding your Koi One of the most rewarding and entertaining things about having a Koi pond is when your fish finally start eating out of your hand. There is no better way to learn each fishes' personality and temprament than to have them nuzzle your fingers when they are hungry. Riding Lawn Mowers Most riding lawn mowers are machines fun ride and extremely cool to look at. However, they are just a dream for many gardeners who can not afford one of these powerful gardening equipment. Growing and Preserving Cut Flowers There is nothing more cheerful than vases full of fresh flowers placed around the house that have been grown and cut from your own garden. A cut flower is one that has been cut at the stem and placed in a vase of water. Learn All About Feng Shui Money Trees A feng shui money tree is an indoor plant used in order to attract prosperity and wealth into any space. The feng shui money tree's botanical name is Pachira, and its care requires the average sun light and watering that any other indoor plant would need. Plan for Winter Plantings Part four in a seriesIt's hard to think about winter when our gardens are in full bloom and the vegetables are ripening on the vine! But we must keep winter in mind when we are planning our landscape. Afterall, we have to look at our landscape all year long, including winter. Teak Furniture - The Proper Way to Care For & Clean It Teak furniture is tropical hardwood that has a rich, golden honey color when new. However, as teak begins to age and is exposed to the elements, the natural, beautiful color changes to a silvery gray patina. Pine Furniture Care Guide First, some background on PINE WOOD. Pine is a naturally soft wood which continues to "breathe", based upon changes in the local (home, office, store, etc. Teak Furniture: The Premier Outdoor Furniture When selecting furniture for their outdoor spaces, many people purchase pieces made with teak, a hard strong durable golden-brown wood, which is both resistant to the elements and requires little maintenance.Teak grows in the region of Southeast Asia, mainly in Java, Indonesia, and is harvested from the surrounding forests and teak plantations by the locals and the Indonesian government. A Look at Planting Flower Bulbs Flowers are a favorite of many backyard gardeners. Thanks to their ease of planting and relatively low cost, flower bulbs are a popular choice for flower gardens. Lawn Care Business Owners - Dont Buy Yourself A Job Most businesses consist of the owner only or the owner and a few employees. The owner continues to do the same activity whether it is labor or crew management for many years. Wooden You Like to Know? A Primer to Wood Outdoor Furnishings To many people, wood is the quintessential building material for furniture, both indoor and out. There's a wooden furniture form to suit every budget and dcor -- from rustic twig loveseats to classis cedar Adirondack chairs to sophisticated teak tables and benches. Trust Your Plants - They Know How To Grow! I've done a lot of container gardening over the years, and one thing is a given for potted plants: it's a life of constant change. Moving around from one part of the garden, patio or sunroom to another, moving indoors and back outdoors again, and of course the inevitable periodic re-potting.
|
| home | site map |
| © 2006 |