Cooking with flowers

With their special scent and colour, flowers lend a touch of the exotic to food. A couple of recipes...

May 04, 2015 06:27 pm | Updated 06:27 pm IST

Flower flavours: Hibiscus tea. Photo: Special Arrangement

Flower flavours: Hibiscus tea. Photo: Special Arrangement

While you may be no stranger to cooking with flowers — cauliflower, drumstick flower, banana flower and pumpkin flower, have you ever tried recipes using lavender, hibiscus or calendula? Flowers such as marigold, nasturtium, lavender, zucchini and roses look attractive as garnishes, but what do they taste like?

Nasturtium has a delicious peppery flavour, while violets, roses and lavender lend a sweet flavour to salads and desserts. As calendula is similar to saffron in flavour, it is used as an alternative. All flowers are not edible; some are poisonous and could cause serious stomach problems.

If you are prone to allergies, introduce flowers in small quantities, so you can judge their effect.

A couple of recipes…

Hibiscus tea

Ingredients:

1 cup boiling water

1 hibiscus flower

Sugar to taste

A few drops of lemon juice

A few ice cubes

Method:

Remove stamen from the flower. Clean the flower thoroughly. Ensure it is free of pesticides.

Alternatively, you can buy dried hibiscus tea in a health food store.

Place one hibiscus flower in a cup, and then steep it in boiling water.

Stir (the water will turn a blackish purple as the colour comes out of the flower). Remove the flower.

Add sugar to taste, and then stir to dissolve. Squeeze lemon juice into the cup. The colour will turn bright pink. Set aside to cool. Add ice cubes and serve.

Rose petal custard

Ingredients:

1 litre whole milk

4 cups rose petals

Quarter cup sugar (adjust to taste)

1 tsp vanilla extract

Half cup corn starch

1 tsp rose water

1 cup chopped fresh fruits of your choice

2 tbsp coarsely ground nuts (almonds, cashew and unsalted pistachio)

Method:

In a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan, bring the milk to boil, and then remove from the heat.

Remove half cup of milk and set aside. Gently mix rose petals in the warmed milk in the pan and let them soak for 15 to 20 minutes.

Strain the milk, discarding the petals.

Pour the infused milk back into the saucepan; add sugar and vanilla and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Whisk corn starch into the half cup of milk that has been set aside, until there are no lumps.

Add the corn starch mixture to the pan and simmer over low heat, stirring gently for 8-10 minutes or until it is thickened and coats the spoon.

Remove from heat and let in cool.

Refrigerate for some time. Gently fold in fruits. Serve garnished with chopped nuts.

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