Edible flowers!

[Trellum]

Today I read a post that mentioned edible flowers! That got me thinking...how many edible flowers are there?? I was aware you could eat flowers, prepare a couple of things with them (we do that with the zuccini blossoms here), but it never crossed my mind there were more flowers we could actually eat! Here are some examples of how we use the zuccini blossoms over here:

Do you know more flowers that are actually edible? If you do, please share that info with us

 

[Preya_M]

These look absolutely delicious! It's fascinating to know that fruits and vegetables grown in gardens can become such a wonderful and yummy work of art. I've seen people eat flowers found in bouquets, I don't know if we could digest those, but it was a little strange to watch. I know that we can eat banana flowers. I went over to a friend's house and he was cooking banana flowers, at first I laughed, but when I tried it, it was really yummy.

 

[Gina145]

Some of the supermarkets here include edible flowers in packs of lettuce and herbs, but I don't know what the flowers are. I've even heard of people eating rose petals though I've never tried them myself.

 

[Trellum]

Yuck! rose petals?! I don't think rose petals are edible at all! I tried one once... and it didn't taste that good, but I've heard rose petals can be used for many other things. I actually knew a woman who liked to make her own rose water. It was quite good actually I heard some people really like rose syrup too, but I don't think rose petals should be consumed when they're not processed.

 

[Trellum]

These look absolutely delicious! It's fascinating to know that fruits and vegetables grown in gardens can become such a wonderful and yummy work of art. I've seen people eat flowers found in bouquets, I don't know if we could digest those, but it was a little strange to watch. I know that we can eat banana flowers. I went over to a friend's house and he was cooking banana flowers, at first I laughed, but when I tried it, it was really yummy.

Hehehe, I don't think that eating flowers from a bouquet is a good idea. Actually not all the flowers out there are supposed to be edible, I heard you can cook using nasturtium flowers as well:

 

[claudine]

I haven't eaten any flowers yet, but I've been thinking about it for a while now. The idea of it sounds so romantic! I don't know, I just love when my food looks pretty
I'm sure that these cupcakes decorated with rose petals are delicious:

 

[Gina145]

Trellum, those plates of food look wonderful. I've eaten a few flowers, but I agree that it would be risky to eat flowers from a bouquet. Some of them could be toxic.

 

[Jewell]

I love using flowers in summer dishes. Some herb flowers from thyme, oregano, chives, and mint are great in salads. Calendula, beebalm, lilac blooms/petals are also pleasant to the eye and taste buds with fresh greens. I love dressing up a summer fruit salad with flower petals. Some flowers can fancy up a cup of tea. The best restaurants use flower petals in their costly dishes.

Always be sure to double check the internet or have a good reference book before trying flowers you are unsure of. Some like digitalis can put you in the hospital or aconite flowers will kill you. It is always best to know about what you are planning on eating ahead of time.

 

[Trellum]

Good advice, Jewel! It looks like we have an expert flower eater over here I have never experimented with other flowers, apart from the zuccini blossom, and the hibiscus flower we use to make sweet drinks! Very tasty, by the way! Other than that... nope, I'm not very daring! I'm actually a bit afraid of eating flowers, especially the ones I haven't experimented with so far, but thanks for the warning! It is dangerous to eat some flowers! Just like when you consume mushrooms and herbs.

 

[Trellum]

Trellum, those plates of food look wonderful. I've eaten a few flowers, but I agree that it would be risky to eat flowers from a bouquet. Some of them could be toxic.

Yeah! There are a lot toxic flowers that could kill you. LOL, actually this thread reminded me of a simpson's episode in which Homer is caught eating tulips in his bathroom I don't blame him... some tulips look so good I could eat them as well!

 

[Trellum]

I haven't eaten any flowers yet, but I've been thinking about it for a while now. The idea of it sounds so romantic! I don't know, I just love when my food looks pretty
I'm sure that these cupcakes decorated with rose petals are delicious:

Very nice picture, Clau Have you ever tried to eat the petals of a rose? I haven't tried that so far, to be honest I'm not even sure if we are supposed to eat raw rose petals, but I do know there are many products that are made with rose petals

 

[Jewell]

Actually I only know of one flower that could outright kill you, monkshood/aconite. Many others would make you feel bad enough to maybe wish for it all to end. Here is a link that gives you the symptoms and cures of the most common inedible flowers plants. http://www.livescience.com/11356-top-10-poisonous-plants.html

The foodie revolution has given us such a rich number of interesting dishes I could never have imagined.

 

[claudine]

Very nice picture, Clau Have you ever tried to eat the petals of a rose? I haven't tried that so far, to be honest I'm not even sure if we are supposed to eat raw rose petals, but I do know there are many products that are made with rose petals

No, I havent't tried them yet. I always imagine them to be very sweet and delicious and I guess I'm just scared that I'll be disappointed.
I heard somewhere that raw rose petals are safe to eat though. Of course it can't be a rose from a florist, because they add some chemicals to water to make sure that flowers won't wither too quickly.
In general, I think that it's safer to eat flowers that you grew yourself.

 

[Trellum]

Aw don't be scared! You can try it and later tell us how it all went, I'm sure the flavour won't disappoint you A friend of mine has tried a lot things in his life, inluiding flowers but seriously, if you haven't tried eating any kind of flower, I really recommend you to start with zuccini blossoms! I wasn't that fan of eating flowers until I tried those

 

[Trellum]

Actually I only know of one flower that could outright kill you, monkshood/aconite. Many others would make you feel bad enough to maybe wish for it all to end. Here is a link that gives you the symptoms and cures of the most common inedible flowers plants. http://www.livescience.com/11356-top-10-poisonous-plants.html

The foodie revolution has given us such a rich number of interesting dishes I could never have imagined.

Interesting! I just checked a picture of the flower you mentioned. Actually, having this kind of information can be extremely useful! Because you never know what your kids are playing with, and most kids like to put things in their mouths! A very close call. Thanks for the link, I'm actually checking it out right now. I must say I'm a bit sad to see the Wisteria tree on this list Again, thanks for the info! You never think about this until it's too late Better be prepared!