Some of you may recall I purchased this book last summer:
To be honest, I didn't really "get to it" last year, but am determined to do better this summer.
So with the lilac and tulips waning, it seemed like the perfect time!
The critical thing is to clean those lilac blossoms well. It is amazing how many little critters get into the tiny flowers...
The picture below shows the blossoms 'steeping' in their simple syrup:
Already beginning to take on a lovely pinky hue...
And the piece de resistance is serving your lilac sorbets in tulip cups:
Scoop in your sorbet, and enjoy!
Very little work and very lovely and distinctive tasting. The tulips themselves were quite tasty as well!
How impressive would this be for a dinner party????
A caveat: I would NOT do this with store-bought tulips or lilacs. You simply have no idea what they have been sprayed with to keep them fresh for the journey. These were picked from my completely organic garden(s), so I was confident about them.
This is the beginning of my love affair with flower cooking... It makes the nasturtiums and squash blossoms I had previously been cooking with seem like mere child's play!
What do you think? Would you try this?
Have a great Saturday!
xoxo wendy
Happy Saturday Wendy! The sorbet turned out a really beautiful colour. I can't imagine what they taste like though?
ReplyDeleteWith your garden you have all the raw materials to really test out that book - you should do a post at the end of summer and let us know about all the things you made!
Patricia - it tasted wonderful - very fresh and crisp tasting!
Deletewill keep you posted as I work my way through them!
It looks gorgeous! You say 'distinctive' tasting, now tell me, does that mean tasty?! I love the look of the crazy cake on the cover of the book and hope that you are going to blog plenty of the recipes. The only things that I've done with flowers is to make elderflower cordial and to crystallise primroses.Now I'll be looking to you for inspiration!
ReplyDeleteIt was quite lovely, actually. I wish I could make elderflower cordial - none in my garden and unsure if I've ever seen it around here!
DeleteLooks great Wendy!
ReplyDeleteIt is a feast for the eyes,just looking at it!
thanks Ina!
DeleteLove the tulips sorbet cup but I would have to grow my own tulips so not really an option for me I am afraid...
ReplyDeleteif you were nearby, I'd make some for you!
DeleteWell done!! Bravo! I'm very impressed. How did it taste? Enjoy you're weekend xoJ
ReplyDeleteJennifer - it tasted wonderful!
Deletesomehow I'm reminded of those recipes for asparagus where you're supposed to rinse the flower ends of each stem 3 times...
ReplyDeleteand speaking of asparagus, a favorite memory: lady who grew up with (ahem) help sees asparagus growing for the first time. "Oh, my," quoth she, "I always thought the cook braided the tips."
Have fun, Wendy!
that is a funny story!!
DeleteHahahaha-- love that, Fred!! I am going to have a partially sad weeks as this is the last one we harvest asparagus before letting the ferns come.
DeleteWendy,
ReplyDeleteI don't know if I am more impressed with the fact that you grew those lovely flowers or that you made that fabulous dessert. Wow. I am looking forward to your next creation.
I have never tried lilacs, but a local restaurant used to serve sugared violets- so pretty - on a raspberry mousse placed in a dark chocolate cup.
I have done sugared violets and pansies, but I don't have a ton this year for some reason! This was a great dessert!
DeleteNot sure if I would actually eat the tulips but the sorbet would be a definite go. I have thrown flowers Ina salad once or twice but that is about all. I keep thinking I need to make my own lavender and rosemary sachets for the bath but I never do.
ReplyDeleteBB - the tulip was wonderful!
DeleteI think that's amazing, how gorgeous! And the colour!
ReplyDeleteit was great!
DeleteThose look too pretty to eat! It might even get me over the fact that the hubs cut all the blooms off my hydrangea when he was out trimming shrubs. He didn't realize it only blooms once a year!
ReplyDeleteOh SC!!!! that is heartbreaking!!!
DeleteEven I would not attempt this! Well done. We've sugared violets when the girls were little; I've made lavender infusions for various reasons with very good results. I have slews of nasturtiums, chive blossoms, calendula, but if I offer it salads people tend to pick it out. I'd rather eat the veggies themselves. BTW, anyone in the neighborhood please come get some cilantro and dill!
ReplyDeletedo Cilantro and dill overwinter where you are? they don't make it in my garden! I do not understand people picking out the flowers - they are so good and no different than the other veggie flowers we eat!
DeleteNo they self seed like mad. I let the ones I don't use flower which provides food for my bees as well as encouraging tiny beneficial wasps. The seeds get everywhere and I have little plants in the sprig to give away. My chef friends love it!
DeleteHow beautiful! That would be very impressive for a dinner party!
ReplyDeleteIt would Barb, but it would have to be timed perfectly!
DeleteThe extent of my cooking with flowers has been picking them from the garden and adding them to a salad. :) I have also eaten cheese made on a farm from Saltspring Island that uses flowers extensively.
ReplyDeleteoh my what a stunning dessert! i love this wendy. i can't imagine the ooohs and awwws if you served this to company. so good.
ReplyDeleteOh that's pretty. I've added them to a salad like Rose and loved that, need to think of them more to schooz up my assemblage
ReplyDeleteI would definitely try it!!! It looks so pretty, and I do think that we eat as much with our eyes as with our mouth...
ReplyDeleteI'd love to try this! They look so pretty, I can't really imagine the taste though, super for a dinner party table, eat it before it melts!
ReplyDeleteThis is fascinating! We have a huge lilac bush at the end of the garden, and I had no idea that the flowers were edible. For that matter, I had no idea tulips were edible! The extent of my cooking with flowers has been to make sugared violets. My inlaws made a Swedish krokan, a tiered confection made of sugar biscuits, and served it at our wedding reception. The whole thing was decorated in sugared violets, picked from our backyard! I would love to make elderflower cordial some day - my husband has fond memories of his grandmother making it from the elderflower blossoms picked from the trees on their property. However, we don't have any elderflower bushes, so we settle for the cordial from Ikea.
ReplyDelete