Graduation and confirmation season has arrived and summer weddings are just around the corner!
After a long winter of record snow amounts and the coldest days, it should come as no surprise that lots of us are looking to some spring and summer celebrations. From the candied flowers that decorate individual gourmet cupcakes to hibiscus sugar flowers for a tiered wedding cake, there are plenty of sweet ways to make sure that your next celebration is a success.
Many Varieties of Edible Flowers Add Both Taste and Color to Desserts
When you are getting ready to plan your next celebration, it is likely that a tasty and beautiful dessert is high on the list of your goals. And while there is a trend to move away from processed sugars, there is also a move toward to using more natural ingredients whenever possible. Candied flowers that are sweetened with real sugar are used more frequently as graduates, confirmands, and brides look for a tasty and colorful way to decorate their dessert offerings.
Consider some of these facts and figures about the use of various kinds of candied flowers and other types of edible flowers:
- Anise and hyssop are two plans that have flowers and leaves that have a subtle licorice or anise flavor.
- The vibrant cranberry flavor of a hibiscus is often used in tea, but it is tart so it should be used sparingly. The blossoms make beautiful additions to many desserts.
- Although the petals can be a little bland, if you eat the while flower, a pansy can be pretty tasty.
- Including more than 300,000 photos that have been contributed by more than 19,000 members, one of the largest and most active Flickr groups is called “I Ate This.” It should come as no surprise that edible flowers are often featured in many of these pictures.
- 10% of the total U.S. restaurant sales are from the the upscale segment of the restaurant industry, a group that might be more likely to use edible flowers in their dessert presentations.
- There are perhaps 100 types of common garden flowers that are both palatable and edible.
The art of crystallized flowers can be difficult to master, but it is worth the effort. And while it means that you likely have to hire a professional chef to achieve he look that you want.
