Its been a mixed weather bag around here in the north country.
Ive harvested Swiss chard, lettuces, some fennel, strawberries and lots of delightful herbs.
Oh, a lot of weeds, too, but thats another story.
Yes, one more cupcake from the garden party buffet.
We even had a power outage just before I started cooking for a solstice dinner party of seven!
Its that time of year where we attempt to squeeze in as much as possible.
After all, we have to give the roses their chance to shine.
Watching the storm descend on us over Lake Champlain
I have never made it from scratch myself, but it is on the list of recipes to try.
In the meantime, the freezer section always has a nice stock.
Just take it out the day before you are using and let it thaw in the refrigerator.
The skies opened up, but a nice lady at the check-in gave us a beautiful vase of peonies to bring home.
At first, I was just going to make a tart and sprinkle on the petals and herbs.
You get a peek at whats inside which jump-starts the imagination and the salivary glands.
Ive included a list of common ones at the end.
Another note, taste first.
Edible does not always mean palatable, and some flowers can be bitter or simply not to your taste.
Some have a surprising depth of flavor, especially herbs.
If youve ever tasted a fennel flower, you know what I mean.
An explosion of flavor in a tiny petal.
The jelly definitely had some heat, but that was toned down considerably by the cheese.
Assemble your potential petals and herbs, give yourself options.
If you want more heat, just add a few crushed red pepper flakes.
Combined, the sweet, tangy, warm, and pungent flavors worked great together.
A fun dish to make
They look fussy, but are really quite fun and simple to make.
Spread the cheese and jelly mixture evenly over the bottom six leaves of phyllo.
I made one tart with just lavender and tarragon and it was delicious.
Dont forget your pretty hat.
Youll probably need it this year.
Sprinkle with the petals and herbs.
Bring the chevre and jelly to room temperature and when soft, mix well until smooth and creamy.
Season with salt and pepper.
If the chevre is really stiff, loosen with a bit of milk or yoghurt.
Cut and fry gently.
You want this to be a soft spread so you dont tear the phyllo.
Assemble the petals and herbs you want to use.
If using something like mint, choose the smaller leaves.
Voila!
Remove the lavender from the stalks, if using, and choose the smallest rose and flower petals.
fire up the phyllo and place on the counter under a towel to keep it from drying out.
Remove one leaf, cover the rest, and spray with the oil.
Rosa rugosa, a species rose. Fragrant, pest and disease resistant, and quite delicious. Plus, it produces fat hips in the fall.
Repeat until you have six leaves joined, but dont spray the last one.
Give everything a gentle press to join, but not too hard.
Gently cut into the desired size with a sharp knife and ruler.
Fennel, a favorite of mine, from root to flower, all edible.
I made most of mine 3 by 3 and a few smaller.
Two-inch squares are pretty versatile for a party.
Let cook for about 45 seconds and check.
Let’s start with a party.
You want them to be just starting to brown.
Turn over, and cook for another minute and a half or so to firm up the bottom.
Place on toweling to absorb extra moisture, then let set on a cooling rack to firm up.
Everything in living color.
As they sit, the flowers will be more pronounced, like magic.
Add a bit more oil to the pan before each batch.
Once cool, plate, maybe with a few more edible flowers!
The time of the roses.
But if it is safe, taste and determine if it is something you like.
Some of the flavors are surprisingly delicious.
Start with a little, and add more if you want.
Buddha has been with me for five moves to different houses.
Herb blossoms often taste like an intense form of the actual herb, like fennel.
Many preserve nicely as well, either dried or freezing.
I love to preserve chive blossoms in vinegar, its so pretty and tastes beautifully of spring.
Almost tomato time.
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We’ll have figs this year!
