Edible Flowers - Monday Munchies

Glorious spring time! I await your arrival all winter long! And with spring comes the planting and seasonal emerging of my delicious and beautiful edible flowers. My, how I love them. If you've ever thought about taking your garden up a notch, then edible flowers are an excellent start.  But their beauty is not the end of it. They are also delicious! You can cook with them, can with them, or use them fresh. This should give you some ideas to get you started...

You can always count on Martha to give you a good overview on all kinds unique topics, including Edible flowers.

Zucchini flowers are a little piece of heaven.  This Crisy Zucchini Flowers Stuffed with Ricotta and Mint recipe from Jamie Oliver, courtesy of Food Network, gets five stars!

I love this idea for eating seasonally with Wild Violet Jelly from Moo said the Mama.

Or just toss them with a salad as suggested in Chester County Dwell.  This site also offers some smart precautions for those of use who like to eat our edible bouquets fresh from the plant.

And I'm sure you remember the way Heather and I used a single edible pansy to garnish our candied lemon drop martini invention last week.  How beautiful is that?!?!

So go ahead.  Eat some flowers!!!  They're not just for looks anymore. This chart of edible flowers from About.com is pretty comprehensive and should serve you well as a guide. Have fun.