It is said that beauty is in the eyes of the beholder. While this famous dialogue fits right in most situations, we find it unnecessary in some places—for example, food decoration. We find decorated food extremely beautiful, but we can’t get away with saying that it’s our eyes that have beauty. The credit is to be given to the person who invested their time and efforts decorating the food.
Speaking of food decoration, we can’t forget about edible flowers. They are one of the most ancient ways to decorate food items, and they amp up the look of any dish manifold.
So, if you want to do something similar, here are the top five edible flowers that you can use to decorate your foods.
Hibiscus
You can eat a hibiscus flower straight out of the tree. That’s how edible it is. It comes in beautiful shades of red, pink, white, and yellow. It grows perfectly fine in tropical and subtropical climates. The flower can get as big as six inches in diameter. It has a ton of benefits that start from ornamental and go as far as medicinal.
For culinary purposes, they are used mainly in salads, jams, tea, and relishes. Hibiscus sabdariffa is the most edible variety of Hibiscus. It is also called Roselle.
Dandelion
You must remember dandelions as stubborn weeds found in the garden. A lot of people don’t know this, but dandelions are edible and highly nutritious as well. They get their biggest at 4 cm in diameter and have several tiny and yellow petals.
You can eat the roots, stems, and even the leaves of dandelions. They can be cooked or eaten raw. Dandelion jellies and wine are a real delicacy. You must not shy away from tossing some pretty dandelion flowers in your cake or pie. They elevate the look of any food item.
Lavender
You might know this already, but lavender is just as much a herb as it is a flower. That’s why the plane is called a floral-herb. This explains the edible properties of lavender. The flowers are small and violet, but they are many in number, wherever they are found.
The scent of lavender is what has made the flower so famous all across the world. However, that should not overshadow its irresistible taste and fragrance when used in food items. It is widely used in baked goods, teas, syrups, liqueurs, and many more. You will often see the use of flowers for decoration at many high end restaurants.
Honeysuckle
As the name suggests, you can eat a Honeysuckle flower. It has a beautiful fragrance and a sweet taste. The most common use of the honeysuckle flower is syrup making. Honeysuckle teas are just as much loved, though.
While the flower is edible enough, you might want to gain more information on the specific type. There are over 200 species of the flower all across the world. We don’t want you to put yourself at risk by ingesting the wrong kind of Honeysuckle.
Rose
The best part about this universal flower is that it has over 150 varieties, but they are all safe to be eaten. You can’t expect them all to taste the same, though. Perhaps, that’s the true beauty of it. The more fragrant the petals are, the tastier they will be.
Because of its romantic appearance and fragrance, chefs from all parts of the world don’t hesitate to use roses in wines and cakes. If you are going to do the same, make sure that you are not eating the stems or the leaves. That won’t be the most pleasant experience.
