Edible flowers are both beautiful and functional. So many flowers are edible, from nasturtiums, pansies, and violets, to perennial herbs like rosemary, sage and chive. The effort you make to plant and cultivate them will reward you both in the garden and on the plate.
The burst of color from edible flowers to garnish a dish is common, especially in the Italian alpine regions of Friuli and Alto Adige. The pop of color you get from violets or nasturtiums sprinkled in a salad or served on a cheese board is a joyful alpine expression! A little further south, acacia and elder flowers are a springtime treat in the regions of Veneto and Lombardia. The acacia (aka black locust) trees are in bloom now in Italy and the US and line the roadways with their full white boughs. And everyone who has been to Italy knows that fried zucchini flowers are a summer staple. Plant zucchini now for flowers all summer long.
We have really been enjoying the chive flowers this spring, sprinkled on soup or in salads. The slight oniony bite gives an unexpected lift to so many dishes. Plant chives now and you will have flowers next spring. Rosemary flowers are delicious sprinkled on sautéed mushrooms that top a grilled steak. Sage flowers are wonderful fried and served as aperitivo with a cold glass of prosecco or white wine.
sage flowers in springflowering rosemarythyme blossoms
The blossoms of herbs carry the perfume and flavor of the herb, but with more subtlety. Sprinkle the flowers on anything you would normally flavor the dish with, just before serving. Be sure to only eat flowers that have not been treated with chemicals though. Buon Appetito!
All the members of the squash family – zucchini, squash, pumpkin – put out an edible flower, which in the summer in Italy is easy to find and not expensive to purchase. The zucchini flower is the hardiest and largest, making it ideal for stuffing, while squash and pumpkin blossoms tend to be more delicate and small.
The best time to pick the flowers is in the morning when they’re open. The flowers you want are the males on a long stem; keep a couple inches of the stem, it’s edible and is nice and crunchy when fried. Be sure to leave one male flower per plant to ensure continued pollination of the female flower.
The female flower will have a small zucchini attached to it.
Shake off any bugs or bees, remove the spikes at the base of the flower, and remove the stamen. The flowers will close up and slightly shrink after an hour or two and if you wait to remove the stamen you’ll end up having to rip through the flower to get inside. Be careful not to crush the flowers – I always carry a basket rather than a bag.
The flowers fried on their own are traditional and really delicious, but If you want to stuff them, do it immediately when you get home. Once the flower has closed up it will be difficult to stuff them without ripping the blossom. Just keep the stuffing simple so as not to overwhelm the delicate flavor of the flowers. Instead of stuffing the flowers, my grandmother always put a sprinkling of Parmigiano or Pecorino Romano cheese on top after they were fried!
This is a true summer treat and it’s not too late to find a farmer or a zucchini field to forage!
Fried Zucchini Flowers Zucchini flowers can be stuffed with sage and chopped fresh pecorino for a delightful Tuscan flavour. A more southern Italian taste is mozzarella and a piece of anchovy. If you don’t wish to stuff them, just dip them in the batter and fry. Zucchini flowers, cleaned 2-3 per person Batter for frying (see recipe) Peanut oil for frying Clean the zucchini flowers by removing the spikes on the outside at the bottom of the flower and the stamen inside. It’s best done when the flowers are open in the morning, but if they are already closed when you get them, just be careful not to rip the flower too much. For sage and pecorino, mince 2 tbsp pecorino and 3 sage leaves together in a small bowl and stuff the flowers with about a teaspoon of the mixture. For mozzarella and anchovy, simply put a small piece of anchovy on a long wedge of mozzarella and insert it in the flower.
Batter for Frying 2 cups AP flour 2-3 cups white wine 1 teas sea salt Put flour and salt in a bowl, with a whisk begin adding the wine, whisking vigorously to break up any lumps, until the mixture is the consistency of a thin pancake batter. Allow to sit for a few minutes. Line a baking dish with paper towels.
Heat the oil on a high heat until a drop of batter fries and browns quickly. Dip each flower in the batter and drop in the hot oil. Using tongs, turn the flowers when they’re golden brown on one side. If they get too brown too quickly, reduce the heat. If they take a long time to brown, leave the pan empty while the oil comes back up to temperature (350′).
A generous sprinkling of grated Parmigiano is delicious. Serve with a dry cold white or rose’ wine!
The summer is winding down but the garden is still pumping out zucchini flowers. My neighbor had a bumper crop after returning from vacation and she gave me a bunch this morning. As the Tuscans say “Even a slipper is good fried,” so I fried them up and managed to take a picture just before we devoured them for lunch! While the flowers themselves don’t have a lot of flavor, once batter dipped and fried in hot oil, they’re delicious!
Make a simple batter with flour, sea salt and white wine. The alcohol in the wine ties up the gluten in the flour and helps to add a nice crunch. We fry so much in Italy that there are special flours for an extra crunchy exterior. The ingredients include wheat and rice flour, baking soda and corn starch and it really does make the flowers so crunchy you can’t hear table conversation!
Use peanut oil to fry, it gets hottest without smoking. I generally add a little extra virgin olive oil for flavor.
Grandma always sprinkled her fried zucchini blossoms with grated parmigiano which I think adds a nice touch.
Edible flowers are both beautiful and functional. So many flowers are edible, from nasturtiums, pansies, and violets, to perennial herbs like rosemary, sage and chive. The effort you make to plant and cultivate them will reward you both in the garden and on the plate.
