Edible beauty

"A rose by any other name would smell as sweet," said Shakespeare. But after a recent visit to Holland's Floriade, the once-in-a-decade event that is a veritable World's Fair of flowers, I got to wondering if it would still taste as good.

The Floriade, which runs until mid-October, showcases more than 300 floral exhibits from around the world. Nations from four continents are represented, but the star of the show may be the Dutch themselves with their display of 130,000 tulips, the national hallmark.

You can work up quite an appetite roaming around the Floriade's 160 acres, I discovered, so it's not surprising that someone like me would begin to think about the culinary possibilities blooming around me. But I'm hardly the first person to do so. Cooking with flowers is age-old.

In ancient Rome, as Cathy Wilkinson Barash notes, the lower classes, who could not afford saffron, used powdered calendula petals instead. Saffron itself, of course, is made from the stigmas of the crocus flower. In ancient Persia some 2,000 years ago, as the "Oxford Companion to Food" notes, they made wine from rose petals. In Iran today rose petals are still preserved in jams and added to advieh, a spice mixture used in savory dishes. Even the Bible, as Peggy Trowbridge points out, refers to the dandelion as an edible, albeit bitter, herb.

Different cultures have embraced edible flowers in different ways. In the Orient they prize daylilies and chrysanthemums, in Italy they stuff squash blossoms, and in Britain, where the culinary use of flowers is seen as charmingly old-fashioned, they have a taste for nasturtiums, violets and marigolds. John Gerard's 17th-century book on herbs maintains that "no broths are well made without dried Marigolds." Even the classic French liqueur Chartreuse boasts carnations as a secret ingredient.

Yet many people are still hesitant to bite into the idea of eating flowers. Perhaps they think it isn't safe or maybe they think it's just bizarre. Rosalind Creasy, a leading authority on the subject who confesses to occasionally stooping to sneak a bite of her host's centerpiece, suggests a novel explanation. She says, "People believe that flowers are almost magical, so beautiful that only the eyes should feast on them. To those folks, eating flowers seems a bit greedy."

Such people might be surprised to learn that in one form or another they've probably been eating flowers all along without realizing it. Broccoli is technically a flower, though an immature one. So is cauliflower. So are artichokes.

So how big a step can it be to advance from broccoli to begonias, from cauliflower to carnations, or from artichokes to apple blossoms? Marsha Toll, who runs the elegant Bellevue Bed & Breakfast in a beautifully restored 111-year-old house in Cape Girardeau, thinks it's a step that ought to be taken. She delights in serving her guests dishes featuring fresh flowers.

Among Toll's favorite edible flowers are nasturtiums. The entire plant -- flowers, leaves, and seed pods -- is edible, but she prefers the blossoms, which have a tangy flavor reminiscent of watercress. Nasturtiums can be incorporated into butters and soft cheeses or used to flavor oils, dressings, and vinegars. They're wonderful in cucumber sandwiches and canapés or sprinkled over a salad or even in pasta dishes. And, of course, they make beautiful garnishes.

Roses, according to the "Oxford Companion to Food," are the most widely used of all flowers having culinary applications. All types are edible and their taste reminds some of strawberries. They can be frozen into ice cubes, candied and used to decorate desserts, made into syrups and jellies, or used, as they were in a classic scene in the movie "Like Water for Chocolate," as the secret ingredient in poultry dishes. Moreover, rosewater, said to have been discovered by the famous 10th century Persian physician Avicenna, is used as a flavoring in several foods.

Lots of other flowers can be used in cooking, including begonias (their stems can substitute for rhubarb), carnations, marigolds, gardenias, gladiolas, lavender (imparts wonderful fragrance to cheesecake or ice cream), dandelions, daylilies, chrysanthemums, English daisies, tulips (stuff them whole with chicken salad for a spectacular presentation), pansies, hibiscus, violets (great for candying) and even scented geraniums.

Whichever varieties you chose, Toll suggests you grow them yourself, as she does. That way you'll have a reliable and inexpensive source and, more importantly, you'll know they are safe to eat, something you can't count on if you buy flowers from a nursery, florist, or garden center. Their products are likely to have been treated with pesticides and should be avoided.

Always double-check that a given flower, or part of it, is edible. Sometimes one part is, but another is not. (Rhubarb stalks, for example, are edible but their leaves are poisonous.) Remove a flower's pistil and stamens before eating because they may contain pollen which can lessen flavor or cause allergic reactions. Also, some flowers, such as roses, taste better if you remove the bitter white part at the base of the petals. Don't forget, too, that just like other produce, the fresher the better. Pick flowers as close to mealtime as possible. And, finally, it's always a good idea to taste a flower before serving it. Just because it's edible doesn't mean you'll like it. For example, though some sources say marigolds have a delightfully citrus flavor, to Creasy their taste falls "somewhere between skunk and quinine."

Use edible flowers in your cooking and you may come to agree with Creasy that they are as essential to good cuisine as salt and pepper. And like Marsha Toll, you'll delight in your guests' reaction when you ask them to "please eat the daisies."

Flower Confetti Salad

Choose nasturtiums, calendulas, violets, pansies, rose petals, or chrysanthemums for this simple salad served at the Bellevue Bed & Breakfast in Cape Girardeau. The recipe is adapted from Rosalind Creasy's book, "The Edible Flower Garden."

Ingredients:

1 large head Bibb lettuce

1 large handful mixed baby greens

6-8 edible flowers

2 tablespoons rice-wine vinegar

salt and pepper

1 teaspoon frozen white grape juice concentrate

3-4 tablespoons olive oil

Wash the lettuce and baby greens and dry them. Break lettuce leaves into bite-size pieces and place in a salad bowl along with the greens. Combine vinegar, salt, pepper, and juice concentrate. Whisk in oil until blended. Carefully wash flowers, pat dry with paper towels, and gently pull off petals. Mix petals together to make a confetti. You will need about 1/3 cup of loosely packed petals. Lightly dress the lettuce and greens, divide among four plates, and scatter a small handful of flower confetti over each serving. Serves 4.

Listen to A Harte Appetite Fridays at 8:49 a.m. and Saturdays at 11:59 a.m. on KRCU, 90.9 FM. Write A Harte Appetite, c/o the Southeast Missourian, P.O. Box 699, Cape Girardeau, Mo., 63702-0699 or by e-mail to tharte@semissourian.com.