lilac water + happy weekend!

lilac water

The lilacs are blooming like mad right now. On a drive through the country last week, I collected lots of branches. I made some lilac water which is such a refreshing little treat for a sunny spring day. I just added a couple of handfulls of blossoms to a pitcher of water and then let it sit in the fridge overnight. I strained the water the next day. It has a very subtle, floral flavor that would pair nicely with a chocolate dessert. Plus, it looks really pretty sitting in the fridge!

14030280583_0e55b28c66_b

I really want to cook more with edible flowers. As a teenager, I used to eat flower salads, flower sandwiches and munch on petals all the time! So, I just checked this book out from the library and can’t wait to dig in! Here are a few more links on things I’ve been thinking about or wanted to share:

This documentary and this article about the clothing industry are incredible moving. It sparked a return to thrifting for me as I try to steer clear of factory-made clothing.

I am now writing about gardening over here. Hope you enjoy my first article on flower gardens.

It’s always a good day when there’s a new Sourdough episode. I am so hungry for cheesecake now!

The new Wildcraft schedule looks amazing! Check out the classes here. (I went last year!)

Have a lovely weekend!

Photos: Chelsea Fuss.

8 comments

  1. Chelsea, that looks amazing! Lilac water is so lovely. And I just loooove edible flowers. I have a packet of edible flowers seed mix from New Seasons that I’ve been looking forward to planting in a container. And this book looks great. I was waiting to buy another edible flower book that is about to be released, but this one is pretty tempting!

  2. Chelsea, speaking of flowers, do you remember when Martha Stewart featured a recipe for a beet salad with pickled nootka rose petals last spring? It was SO good! I ended up making it several times last year! (link to my own post, with links to Martha and notes on changes I made here: http://pacificrain.blogspot.com/2013_05_01_archive.html)

    I love cooking with flowers; they add such a pretty interesting touch to spring and summer foods. Tulips are another great one for the edible flower garden – their brightly-colored petals taste like fresh peas! And stocks (one of my absolute favorite flowers) smell like cloves but taste like radishes; they’re great for tossing into salads. =) I just pickled cherry blossoms for the first time ever this year and can’t wait to try making tea with them like the Japanese do!

  3. Chelsea, I have to thank you for this post! Until I read this, I *never realized* that lilac blooms were edible! I linked back to this on my latest blog post, on – what else? – candying lilac blossoms =)

    Thanks for widening my repertoire of edible flower treats!

  4. I cannot wait to try this. When lilacs first appeared this year, I couldn’t resist tasting a bloom–I feel a little less silly now!

Leave a comment

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