Ann Kroeker, Writing Coach

  • Home
  • About
  • Books
    • On Being a Writer
      • Media Kit
  • Speaking
    • Book Ann as a Guest on Your Show
  • Podcast
  • Courses
  • Blog
  • Contact
  • Work With Me

June 6, 2013 14 Comments

Food on Fridays: Edible Pansies

For the Food on Fridays carnival, any post remotely related to food is welcome—though we love to try new dishes, your post doesn’t have to be a recipe. We’re pretty relaxed over here, and stories and photos are as welcome as menus and recipes. When your Food on Fridays contribution is ready, just grab the button to include with your post. It ties us together visually. Then fill in the boxes of this linky tool to join the fun!

[simplylinked list=feb7014c-f71c-4583-88b6-80142e9d88e4]

Food on Fridays with Ann

two purple pansiesOn the May 30 NPR program Tell Me More, Michelle Martin moderated a discussion about minimalist parenting. Martin asked guest Jamila Bey where she stood regarding the idea of doing more with less as a parent. Bey said that in her home, they value critical thinking and come up with activities to teach her five-year-old son to think:

[T]his past weekend, for example, we went camping and the idea was, OK. Well, let’s pretend that you can’t find Mommy and you have to identify three plants you recognize…so I had the kid running around and it took hours. He could identify the wild strawberries and we ate a lot of wild onions and chives that you can pull right out of the ground and he could point to the black walnut tree.

So no money, other than the gas to get there, and it really did let us be together as a family, doing something together, teaching him to…know his environment. Something he’ll remember forever, I hope.

purple pansy closeupAt this rate, Bey’s son will be ready for My Side of the Mountain in a few years, smoking venison, gathering nuts, and digging up tubers for winter provisions. I didn’t want to be outpaced by a five-year-old, so after listening to that program and writing about snacking on succulents, I decided to learn more about edible plants.

I started with pansies. According to multiple sites, pansies are edible.

In fact, one evening I came across a rabbit nibbling on my pansies. “Hey!” I exclaimed, as if encountering a thief snatching twenties from an ATM, “Hey! He’s eating my pansies!”

purple pansy cup shapedThe audacious bunny scampered away, a purple bloom still sticking out of his mouth. I kept calling after him like Farmer McGregor shouting at Peter Rabbit, “Stop munching on my blooms! Those are my pansies!”

It was my own fault. I’d left them on the ground to give them shade and to water more thoroughly, so they sat at a bunny’s eye (and mouth) level, easy pickin’s.

If it was good enough for the rabbit, I decided it was good enough for me. I considered using a bloom to top a salad, but ended up dressing up dessert.

purple pansy bright verticalI picked an imperfect bloom, brought it in, discovered two tiny slugs (so that’s what’s been eating holes in the petals!), pulled them off and flicked them out the door, washed the pansy thoroughly, and then ate some of its petals with one square of Endangered Species dark chocolate.

Anti-climactic.

I didn’t taste any distinct flavor. So I finished chewing the petals and then tossed the remaining fragments in the trash.

Outside, the slugs will probably nibble holes in the rest of the flowers all night long, but I did place the containers back in the window boxes, out of Peter Rabbit’s reach.

Conclusion: Pansies are edible (just ask the bunny and slugs), but not all that tasty.

purple pansy vertical 1

* * * * *

Photos by Ann Kroeker. “Pin” these images in a way that links back to this particular page, giving proper credit.

Smaller button for various uses

 

Filed Under: Food on Fridays

Comments

  1. Janis@Open My Ears Lord says

    June 7, 2013 at 3:38 am

    You’re braver than I am Ann. I don’t think I’d eat a pansy. Maybe I’d taste the edge of one if I knew it had not been sprayed with any chemical. I know the bunnies eat them up and live. They must have a better digestive system than I do!
    However, I loved your beautiful pic of the pansies!! Maybe it’s time to find some shade here and plant them. They are so beautiful.
    Blessings,
    Janis

    Reply
    • annkroeker says

      June 7, 2013 at 10:56 am

      Janis, you have a good point here that I forgot to mention–we need to be sure they have not been sprayed. It felt weird biting into the petals, especially because they were so dark. Maybe if I had a more brightly colored flower it wouldn’t have felt so intense? They need cool, and when the temperature heats up, the shade helps.

      Reply
  2. April @ The 21st Century Housewife says

    June 7, 2013 at 4:46 am

    I loved the story about Michelle’s son – that is such a great thing to do with your kids! Edible flowers are being used more and more in restaurants over here in the UK and Europe for dressing and decorating salads, desserts etc. I must admit, I rarely actually eat them, as my experience of them is much the same as yours. I find them a bit chewy, and rather flavourless – plus I’m a bit freaked out that I’m eating a flower 🙂 They sure are pretty though! Thank you for hosting 🙂

    Reply
    • annkroeker says

      June 7, 2013 at 10:57 am

      Using them for pretty may be what I need to do. Surprise a friend by sticking it on top of a piece of cake, but not expect her to actually eat it. 🙂

      Reply
  3. Mom says

    June 7, 2013 at 10:47 am

    Somewhere in the bookcase in the breakfast room there is a book of recipes dating to the Revolutionary era. It tells how to prepare flowers to eat, and I am pretty sure that, among other things, you coat them with sugar. Doesn’t matter then how tasteless they are! If memory serves, they suggested violets. I think nasturiums are used in salads…

    Reply
    • annkroeker says

      June 7, 2013 at 11:00 am

      Ahhhhh….great idea. Sugar helps everything from medicine to flowers go down! The resources I was looking through also mentioned nasturtiums and violets. I remember my friend L.L. Barkat writing about eating violets at one of her blogs: http://greeninventionscentral.blogspot.com/2007/05/wordless-wednesday-eating-violets.html
      and http://seedlingsinstone.blogspot.com/2007_04_01_archive.html

      Reply
  4. Hazel Moon says

    June 7, 2013 at 1:43 pm

    Years ago we considered investing in the small orchards that are placed in the exotic drinks. we were told they can be eaten and are quite tasty. We backed out on the investment and did not sample the flowers. Pansy in a salad might be colorful and perhaps nice! Oh yes, Next time flick the slugs down the cammode, not back out into the yard.

    Reply
    • Hazel Moon says

      June 7, 2013 at 1:45 pm

      orchid sorry for my spelling.

      Reply
      • annkroeker says

        June 7, 2013 at 1:59 pm

        Orchids! Those do seem fancy!

        Good thought on the slugs. What was I thinking? I just tossed them right back out to feast on my yard!

        Reply
  5. Mom says

    June 7, 2013 at 2:07 pm

    On reflection, I think you wash the flower, then dip it in beaten egg white and dust it with the sugar….

    Reply
    • annkroeker says

      June 7, 2013 at 2:14 pm

      Based on your suggestion, I plugged a few key words into the search bar and found this: http://www.thebakingpan.com/baking-tips/candied-edible-flowers.html

      Reply
      • mom says

        June 8, 2013 at 1:43 pm

        The egg white and sugar thing works great on grapes, too! Makes a nice garnish to a fancy dinner and they taste ‘way better than flowers!

        Reply
  6. Megan Willome says

    June 13, 2013 at 7:20 pm

    Those two tiny slugs were probably saying to themselves, ““Stop munching on my blooms! Those are my pansies!”

    Reply
    • Ann Kroeker says

      June 13, 2013 at 9:39 pm

      Hilarious! You’re right–it’s all a matter of perspective!

      Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Ann Kroeker, Writing Coach

Providing you with resources and inspiration to be more curious, creative, and productive.

Ad - SiteGround Web Hosting - Crafted for easy site management. Amazing Speed; Powerful Tools; Top-rated support. Learn more.
Make Your Sentences Sing: 7 Sentence Openers to Add Music to Your Prose (Mini Course from Ann Kroeker.Teachable.com)
TWL-100-best-websites-2016-2-300x300

Archives

Categories

Ann Kroeker is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com. Not every link leads to compensation, but assume that each does.
© 2006-2022 Ann Kroeker All Rights Reserved

instagram twitter facebook pinterest

Landing page graphic and other design elements by Sophie Kroeker.

Privacy Policy · Copyright © 2023