Edible Flowers, How to choose Edible Flowers, Eatable Flowers, Edible Flower Chart, List of Edible Flowers, Incredible Edible Flowers Edible flowers are the new rage in haute cuisine Photo of edible flowers picked in Linda's garden in July (lavender, thyme, dill, cilantro, day lily, squash blossom, Nasturtiums, chives, and basil). After falling out of favor for many years, cooking and garnishing with flowers is back in vogue once again. Flower cookery has been traced back to Roman times, and to the Chinese, Middle Eastern, and Indian cultures. Edible flowers were especially popularin the Victorian era during Queen Victoria's reign. Today, many restaurant chefs and innovative home cooks garnish their entrees with flower blossoms for a touch of elegance. One very important thing that you need to remember is that not every flower is edible. In fact, sampling some flowers can make you very, very sick. You also should NEVER use pesticides or other chemicals on any part of any plant that produces blossoms you plan to eat. Never harvest flowers growing by the roadside. How To Choose Edible Flowers - Edible Flower Chart: Directions:
Harvesting and Drying Calendula Mrs. Homegrown here: Okay, so in a previous post I talked about growing Calendula. This post I’m going to talk about harvesting and drying it. The next post I’ll do on the topic will be about making a skin-healing salve from the dried petals, olive oil and beeswax. When to harvest: Start harvesting your Calendula as soon as the first flush of flowers is in full bloom. The ideal time to harvest is in the morning, before it gets warm, but after the dew dries. A side note regarding seeds: If you don’t harvest the heads, they die back on their own, and then they’ll go to seed fast. What parts to harvest: I harvest the flower heads only, though I understand that the foliage has much the same properties as the flowers. To harvest, I either pinch off the heads or cut off the heads with scissors. How to dry: Bring the flower heads indoors, into an area out of direct sunlight. Of course, if you have a dehydrator you could use one of those. If you’re air drying, turn the flowers over every so often.
Edible Water Plants: Aquatic Vegetables Water Spinach Ipomoea aquatica Ipomoea aquatica is a semi-aquatic tropical plant grown as a leaf vegetable. Common names include water spinach, swamp cabbage, water convolvulus, water morning-glory, kangkung, kangkong, eng chai, tangkong, kang kung, rau muống, kongxincai, home sum choy, and ong choy or tung choi. Ipomoea aquatica grows in water or on moist soil. It is most commonly grown in East and Southeast Asia. It has also been introduced to the U.S., where its high growth rate caused it to become an environmental problem, especially in Florida and Texas. The vegetable is a common ingredient in Southeast Asian dishes, with the leaves often stir fried with chile pepper, garlic, ginger, dried shrimp paste, and other spices.
Why Use Honey: Health, Healing, Nutrition, Tips, Recipes, DIY, Doesn't Spoil Column20 unusual ways to use honey, from food to facials. It was brought to my attention last week that September is in fact National Honey Month. Honey gets an entire month all to itself? Why yes, it certainly does. Turns out that Americans consume 1.5 pounds of honey per person annually, and there are more than 300 types of honey in the United States alone. 1. Did you know that making your own lip balm is as easy as tracking down some almond oil, beeswax and honey? 2. If you’ve got a handful of sweet smelling herbs – think lavender - laying around and ready to be used, why not use them for your own homemade honey lotion? 3. In need of a classy hors d’oeuvre but lacking in the time department? 4. You never know what’s going to happen, so stock it. 5. We all know a drop of honey in tea is good for a sore throat, but you can add it to most drinks for an extra energy boost. 6. 1 cantaloupe, chopped3 nectarines, chopped4 tablespoons chopped basil2 tablespoons honey Mix together and enjoy! 7.
How to grow a kiwi plant from seed | Growing Wild Kiwifruit is so tasty; it’s intoxicating. All my life, I’ve enjoyed the unique flavour and texture of kiwis but never stopped to wonder where they come from and how they grow. It took 24 years, countless fruit salads, and the digestion of innumerous tiny black seeds before I thought about planting some. After my first kiwi sprouts emerged from the soil, I did some research and realized that Canada, with its uncomfortably cold winters, is not an ideal environment for growing kiwi plants. While fairly hardy, kiwi cannot survive temperatures below -18 degrees celsius. Whether you’re planting to observe or to consume, here’s how you can get growing your own kiwi vines: Things you’ll need: 1) A kiwi. This is they type of kiwifruit I used! 2) A small mug or container. 3) Paper towels, a plate, and a clear plastic container. 4) Potting soil. 5) Containers/pots. 6) Sun, or a grow light. Method for sprouting kiwi seeds: 4) As soon as you’re seeds are sprouted, it’s time to plant. Water. Like this:
How to make a Calendula oil infusion So finally I get around to finishing off this mini series on Calendula (pot marigold). This post will be on infusing oil, and next week we’ll have the one on salves. We’ve already covered the growing and drying Calendula: Oil infusion is as simple as can be. Oil infusion is soaking. The resulting oil is medicinal. But lets step backwards a bit and talk about materials. Materials Your herb–Calendula or anything else– should be dry when you start this. Now, to be sure, I know folks who infuse fresh herbs in oil, and they’re not all dropping dead. Regarding Calendula specifically, you can soak either the petals alone, or the whole flower heads. Your oil doesn’t have to be super high grade. It doesn’t have to be olive oil, either, but it should be something good for the skin, like jojoba oil or grapeseed oil. The Soaking All you have to do is fill a very clean jar with a good lid about half way full of dried herb, then top it off with oil. Now wait Give the jar a shake every now and then. Harvest
Cooking With Flowers: Tips & Hints Cooking with yummy edible flowers Yes, those flowers look beautiful as garnishes, but what do they taste like? Bean blossoms have a sweet, beany flavor. Nasturtiums have a wonderfully peppery flavor similar to watercress and their pickled buds can be substituted for more expensive capers. Borage tastes like cucumber, and miniature pansies (Johny-Jump-Ups) have a mild wintergreen taste. Violets, roses and lavender lend a sweet flavor to salads or desserts. Bright yellow calendulas are an economic alternative to expensive saffron, though not quite as pungent. When in doubt, taste, but first be sure it's not poisonous. Edible flowers tips and hints Edible flowers as a garnish make any dish look special on your table, but be sure the flavor of the flower compliments the dish. continue reading below our video Loaded: 0% Progress: 0% Here are a few ideas to beautify your recipes and perk up your taste buds: • Sprinkle edible flowers in your green salads for a splash of color and taste. Cookbooks
cooking conversions How to grow a lemon tree from seed | Growing Wild When life gives you lemons, grow trees! If you’ve ever seen a flowering lemon tree, you’ll understand why. For those of you who haven’t, allow me explain. Typically, lemon trees flourish outdoors year-round in hot, sunny regions, but they can also thrive indoors as edible houseplants in cold-season climates. This is the little tree with big fruit in the shop I work at. And while rooting cuttings is a sensible option for fast fruit, lemon tree cuttings are not readily available in many parts of the world. Here is a step-by-step guide to growing your very own lemon tree from seed: Things you’ll need: 1. This is a Meyer lemon! 2. 3. 4. Method for sprouting the lemon seed: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. Here are my little guys one month after planting. At a little less than two months old, this little guy is upgrading to a larger home. 8. Water. Like this: Like Loading...