Edible flowers are a colorful and vibrant powerhouse of antioxidants. With a diverse taste profile, there are several ways to incorporate them into your food. From artistry garnishes to the floral touch being the starlight of the dish, there are several ways to serve edible flowers.
Many enjoy them in salads, beverages, and entrees because of their unique flair of flavors and distinctness. Let us have a look at some easy recipes for cooking with flowers!
We have divided them into sweet and savory to help you choose the one you like for trying.
Sweet Dishes – Recipes for Cooking With Flowers
No-Bake Lilac Blueberry Cheesecake
You can turn a plain cheesecake into an epic symphony of sophistication with the fusion of lilac flowers and blueberries. It is a great spring classic for those that like edible flowers.
Our recipe will result in a 6-inch cake.
List of Ingredients
Lilac flowers pesticide-free
egg white
fine granular sugar
1/4 cup melted butter
Two tablespoons brown sugar
1 cup crushed granola
1/4 teaspoon salt
One tablespoon powdered gelatin
1/4 cup boiling water
1/2 can condensed milk
One tablespoon lemon juice
4 oz cream cheese
8 oz ricotta cheese
One tablespoon lilac flowers stems removed (optional)
Two tablespoons lilac vodka see notes
1 cup blueberries and extra for decoration
Method of Making
Start with making candy lilacs. Thin an egg white with some water and beat it well.
Dip your flowers in and remove the excess by shaking them off. Pour sugar over the flowers with a spoon until fully covered. Let it dry in a fridge on parchment paper for 12 to 24 hours.
Once you have lilac candies, make your cake crust. Add brown sugar, butter, granola, and salt to a food processor. Pulse it until everything mixes. Pour this batter into a 6-inch springform pan, pressing it down with a spoon for an even crust. Refrigerate it.
Then, add gelatin to boiling water and set it aside after it softens.
Then, mix condensed milk with lemon juice in a food processor.
Add cream cheese, gelatin, lilac flowers and vodka, and ricotta in a food processor then. Pulse until combined. It will take about 1 minute.
Now is the time to assemble. Pour half of the prepared filling on the crust in your cake pan. Place half a cup of blueberries on top. Let it rest.
To the rest of the filling, add 1/2 cup of blueberries and blend it.
Now spread this filling over the cake and spread.
Refrigerate overnight and top with extra blueberries and candied lilacs.
Enjoy and have fun!
Spring Salad with Microgreens, Blackberries, and Walnuts
Salads do not have to be boring. With edible flowers, you can have a lot of fun with them. From flavors to colors, this crispy, creamy, crunchy, and juicy salad is a treat. Our recipe lets you serve four small side salads.
List of Ingredients
Salad
3 Cups Microgreens
3 cups Arugula
1/2 Cup Blackberries
1/2 cup walnuts, toasted
Handful Edible Flowers
1/4 Cup Goat Cheese, crumbled (optional)
Dressing
2T Shallots, minced
3T Extra Virgin Olive Oil
2T Balsamic vinegar
1 Tsp Honey
1/4 Tsp Sea Salt
1/4 Tsp Fresh Black Pepper
Method of Making
Rinse and dry your greens and blackberries.
Chop and mince your shallots.
Whisk all of the dressing ingredients together. Top with minced shallots.
Place all ingredients in a large bowl.
Top your salad with walnuts, blackberries, edible flowers, and crumbled goat cheese. Remove stems of your flowers.
It is best if eaten right away. Enjoy!
Savory Dishes – Recipes for Cooking With Flowers
Crispy Stuffed Courgette Flower With Tomato Fondue and Basil Sauce
This one is a great summer starter. The flowers have fillings of Tomme de Savoie cheese. The golden coating of breadcrumbs gives it a crunchy finish.
Below is a quick recipe for it. It serves one to two.
List of Ingredients
For Stuffed Courgette Flowers
4 Courgette flowers
50g of Tomme de Savoie cut into four rectangles (you may use a similar semi-firm cheese)
One beaten egg
75g of Panko breadcrumbs
75ml of Olive Oil
Tomato Fondue
Two beef tomatoes (peeled and chopped)
50ml of Olive oil
One minced garlic clove
Two peeled and chopped shallots
One bunch of basil
One carrot
Salt
freshly ground black pepper
Basil Sauce
One a handful of basil leaves
4 tbsp of toasted pine nuts
30g of grated Parmesan
One garlic clove, peeled and roughly chopped
Olive oil, to taste
Garnishes
toasted pine nuts
Parmesan shavings
The Method For Making
Begin with the tomato fondue. Add olive oil in a pan on a mild flame. Add minced shallots and garlic when the oil heats gently.
Then, add peeled and chopped tomatoes to the pan when garlic and shallots become soft.
Add the bunch of basil tied together to the pan for flavor. Cook for a few more until tomatoes soften, adding the whole carrot for sweetness.
Cover the pan with the lid and cook on low flame for 5 minutes. Let your tomatoes break down to make a paste. Remove the basil bunch and whole carrot from the pan and season to taste. Keep it warm until ready to serve!
Now move to the basil sauce. Put Parmesan, garlic, basil sauce, basil, and pine nuts, in a blender. Get a smooth green sauce with olive oil in it.
Transfer the basil sauce to a small pan and warm through before serving.
The star of your dish is the courgette flowers. First, remove stamen or stigmas from the insides of these edible flowers.
Clean your edible flowers with cold water.
Stuff the flowers with the pieces of cheese, folding the petals carefully back around to close.
Dip the flowers in the egg wash. Then, roll in the breadcrumbs to coat.
Pan-fry the coated courgette flowers in hot oil. Fry until crisp and lightly golden all over.
Serve your edible flower crisps with a spoon of basil sauce and the tomato fondue on the center.
You may garnish with fresh courgette flowers, toasted pine nuts, or shavings of Parmesan!
Avocado Toast with Dukkah and Spring Edible Flowers
A good avocado toast with dukkah always makes a good breakfast. People even snack on this delicious goodie. But imagine if we added a flair of edible flowers and pistachio dukkah for a savory treat? We believe it is a match made in heaven!
Our recipe below serves two.
List of Ingredients
Pistachio Dukkah
3/4 cup shelled pistachios
One teaspoon of fennel seeds
One tablespoon cumin seeds
One tablespoon dried green peppercorns
Three tablespoons coriander seeds
Two tablespoons white sesame seeds
One tablespoon poppy seeds
One teaspoon of sea salt/kosher salt
Two teaspoons hot paprika
The Toast
Two large brown eggs, straight from the fridge
Two slices of bread of your choice
1 1/2 avocados, pitted and sliced
Two tablespoons chives, diced
Two tablespoons lime juice
Two teaspoons dukkah, and additional for sprinkling
salt to taste
your favorite spring greens, I used flowering kale
3-4 chive flowers
For Garnishing/ Assembly
Chive flower petals
Black Pepper Powder
Method of Making
Start with the dukkah. Over medium-high heat, place a small pan.
Then, add fennel seeds to brown for five minutes. Next, put in cumin seeds and let it heat till it smells fragrant.
Pour spices into a bowl and set them aside.
In the same pan, heat coriander seeds and green peppercorns. Let them pop and place them in a separate bowl to set aside.
Toast white sesame seeds and poppy seeds till the sesame seeds become slightly dark in color. It will take approximately 5-8 mins.
Grind toasted fennel, cumin, green peppercorns, coriander seeds, and pistachios with a grinder. Make sure you grind all these separately.
Mix these pistachio and spices with sesame seeds, poppy seeds, salt, and paprika.
Then, soft boil eggs. Peel and cut them in half when done.
Lightly toast two slices of bread.
In a mixing bowl, combine sliced avocados, chives, lime juice, and dukkah. Use a fork to gently mash up the avocado, making sure to leave some large chunks intact. Add salt to taste.
Put your avocado mixture on your two toasts.
Top it with the greens and then the eggs. Sprinkle the petals of chive flowers on the avocado toast!
Garnish with more dukkah, and enjoy!
The Bottomline
There are several dishes and cuisines where edible flowers can be a highlight. Use our top 4 recipes for cooking with flowers to reap their benefits. The importance of flowers is such that they go beyond being beautiful and our food.
We also have a guide on some facts on flowers here that you didn’t know!