Two of my favorites flowers to cook with are Dandelions and Violets. Dandelions can be battered and fried, or broken and stirred into batters. Violets make lovely and delicious teas, and can be frozen in ice trays as a garnish for cool summer drinks.
I always make at least one batch of Dandelion Wine each spring. Here is my recipe:
Pick 1 1/2-2 quarts of Dandelion blossoms in the late morning, when they are fresh, but free of dew. Remove all stems and leaves. Pour 1 gallon boiling water over the blooms, cover and let stand for 24-48 hours. Strain and pour into a crock. Add 3-4 pounds of sugar, depending on how sweet you like your wine, and the juice of 3 lemons and 3 oranges; slice the peel, and add it to the crock. Stir well. Let set for 1 day. Float a piece of bread on top of the mixture, and sprinkle the bread with yeast. Cover with muslin or cheesecloth and leave for 2 days. Remove the bread, strain out the sediment and fruit, and return to crock for another 24-48 hours. Strain again, pour into sterilized bottles with screw-top lids, and cover tightly with cheesecloth until the fermentation (bubbling) stops. Then, screw on the lids, and let set for 4-6 months before drinking. (Try adding other fruits with the citrus, too. Grapes, halved, or raisins work well.)
Because Violets are in such abundance in my garden, I do as much with them as I can. I dry some, I make a violet-infused oil that I use as a nightcream, and I candy some blooms to decorate cakes and cupcakes.
Candied Violets
Brush fresh violet flowers with egg white and dust well or roll in sugar. Lay flat to dry. Store in the refrigerator and use to decorate cakes.
If you are always looking for new how-to's about canning, freezing, and dehydrating, and want to try new recipes, check out Home Food Preservers Magazine at http://members.aol.com/preservers/index.... Be sure to check this site for information on our newest publication, The Preserving Cook, a newsletter dedicated to cooking with what you've put up. It will be filled with oodles and oodles of good recipes for using all those goodies that you've canned, frozen and dehydrated.
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