Customer Reviews

Edible Flowers: From Garden to Palate

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2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This is the best book of edible flower recipes I have found. It is packed with delicious recipes using over 60 different flowers. Conveniently, about half are accompanied by small color photos of the dish.

The book starts out with essential information on cooking with flowers including preserving & drying them. General recipes such as flower butter, honey, sugar, syrup & jelly for each flower follow.

There are also facts on each flower including the scientific name, a brief history, physical characteristics, description of flavor & ideal growing conditions. Great basic information on organic gardening in included as well.

Most of the recipes I've tried, including soups, salads, desserts, drinks & main dishes have been easy to make. My favorite is the herb & flower cheese terrine. It makes a tasty & impressive party appetizer.

"Edible Flowers from Garden to Palate" is a feel good book written for people who are already experts on the subject. How else can you explain that less than 1/3 of one page of this 250 page book is dedicated to "What part of the Flower to Eat" and much of that paltry 16 lines of text is either confusing or inconsistent with other key portions of the book? Although there are specific warnings about flower parts including stamens, styles, pistils and sepals -- there are not any pictures or diagrams illustrating what they look like on the various flower types or how best to remove them. Infact, they are not even listed in the index! Even within these three short paragraphs Ms. Barash apparently contradicts herself. At the bottom of paragraph 1 she states "Remove the sepals of all flowers except violas, Johnny Jump-ups and pansies." Then at the bottom of paragraph 2 she states, "Others, including Johnny jump-ups, violets, runner bean, honeysuckle and clover can be eaten in their entirety." Does "eaten in their entirety" include the sepal or the stamens, the styles and the pistils? For that matter, why is the term pistil used in The Ten Rules of Edible Flowers and not refered to in the section on what parts of the flower are edible? Furthermore, Ms. Barash appears to consistently violate her own "rules". For example, prior to the Introduction she lists The Ten Rules of Edible Flowers which includes number 7, "Remove pistils and stamens from flowers before eating. Eat only the petals." Then on page 231 she states, "If they are on the plate, they should be edible." Both seem like good consistent advise until you read the sections on the individual plants. Page 17 shows a whole Calendula on a plate. Is all of it edible? Page 28 shows a whole Daylily on a plate. Is all of it edible? Page 43 shows a whole nasturtian on a plate. Page 59 shows a whole stem of sage including leaves and flowers on a plate. Page 75 shows a whole stem of anise hyssop including leaves and flowers on a pizza. This raises the question, which flowers do you really have to follow the rules and only eat the petals? A rule is not a rule if almost everything is an exception. This seeming lack of consistency is continued throughout the book. On page 173 both the recipe and the photo call for a whole pineapple guava flower. Is all of the flower edible? Even the dreaded stamens, styles, pistils, and sepals? Which rule if any is being violated by these examples, rule 7 or the prohibiltion on page 231?
Unfortunately, readers who don't already know the answers to these questions will have to find the answers from another source. From my perspective, this book is yet another example of a very disturbing trend in books and magazines related to organic gardeing. It seems at an ever increasing rate that "essential facts" are being replaced by glossy paper and beautiful photos. Why authors and publishers seem to think the two are mutually exclusive is beyond me.

Lots of great ideas for the serious plant nerd. Fairly comprehensive collection of edible flowers complete with appropriate warnings. Many of the recipes have a southeast Asian twist to them.

Well worth having as a reference book. There are numerous tasteful ways to prepare the flowers As well as ways to grow them. The Pictures are very good for descriptions of Plants and What the prepared foods will look like (providing you have the right skills) In the back is a list of some of the plants to look out for that are not to be eaten and she has her list of "rules" when looking into eating the flowers. 250 pages of great Information!

What can one say about an author who thinks that Sappho was a man?