Flowers Worth Eating
To be honest, I’m the kind of guy who is always trying to convince people to eat their daylilies. Really. And redbud blossoms and sweet violets and nasturtiums. Even as a kid: My brothers and I used to suck on purple clover blossoms, snack on the dainty yellow wood sorrel flowers (which taste like dill pickles), and pluck honeysuckle blossoms off their stems, pinch the bottom of each blossom, pull out the stamen and lick the sweet drops of nectar that comes with it.
PEAK FRESHNESS My enthusiasm for edible flowers only increased when I became friends with edible flower maven Cathy Wilkinson Barash, author of Edible Flowers: From Garden to Plate. Over the years she has shared many of her favorite recipes featuring edible flowers, dishes like lilac tea sandwiches and stuffed nasturtiums. But enjoying edible flowers can be as easy as tearing up a handful and tossing them on top of fresh greens, like you see opposite. “Choose flowers that are at their peak,” she advises. “Flowers that are not fully open, those that are past their prime and flowers that are starting to wilt should be passed.” And remove pistils and stamens from the flower petals before eating.
In terms of flavor, herb flowers tend to have the same flavor as the
