Edible Flowers: A Surprising Delight from the Garden

We have a fun blog for you today. We all know that you can eat vegetables and herbs, but did you know that many of these plants also have flowers that you can eat too? We have a fun list of edible flowers list that gives you some flavor profiles you can look forward to if you find that some of your veggies or herbs have started blossoming.

Don’t forget that when your veggies and herbs flower, it’s not just you that gets to enjoy these garden delights; the pollinators also benefit. Don’t get me wrong, grow your vegetables and herbs and harvest all you need, but planting a couple extras might be fun to try if you want to “pretty-up” your dinner plates from time to time.

• Arugula: flowers are a little peppery, a little nutty, just like arugula leaves.
• Borage: flowers have a sweet, honey-like, mild cucumber flavor with a slight saltiness.
• Broccoli: flowers taste peppery with a honeyed finish.
• Calendula: flowers are slightly bitter, with a spicy and peppery flavor that is also mildly sweet.
• Chives: flowers taste mild, with a delicate onion-garlic flavor with some earthy undertones.
• Cilantro: flowers have a milder cilantro flavor, a little tangy.
• Dill: flowers have a subtle licorice, with a bright sweetness and hint of citrus.
• Fennel: flowers taste distinctly of licorice.
• Hyssop: flowers taste similar to mint, but with more floral notes and a pleasant bitterness.
• Kale: flowers are surprisingly sweet.
• Lettuce: tend to have a bit of bitterness to them.
• Mint: flowers are similar in taste to the leaves, yet milder.
• Parsley: flowers taste similar to parsley leaves with a fresh, floral, sweet flavor.
• Radish: flowers have a milder radish flavor, slightly peppery but sweet.
• Rosemary: flowers are very similar in taste to the rosemary needles, but more sweet.
• Summer and Zucchini Squash: flowers have a very mild floral, earthy flavor, hard to detect.
• Thyme: flowers are sweeter and less bitter than the rest of the plant.

• Bachelor Buttons: edible petals/similar to cucumber or raw green bean.
• Sunflower: edible seeds/mild, nutty flavor with a hint of sweetness and a firm but tender texture. When roasted, the nutty flavor intensifies and they develop a complex caramel-like sweetness.
• Bee balm: edible leaves and flowers/a mix of spearmint, peppermint, and oregano, with a prairie twist flavor.
• Echinacea: edible leaves and roots/fresh, strong, floral flavor with a tongue tingling effect similar to peppermint.
• Carnation: edible flowers/sweet taste with a mild flavor of nutmeg and clove that’s slightly spicy and tangy.
• Nasturtium: edible flowers/slightly peppery flavor and a delicate texture; spicier when grown in hotter, sunnier weather. Some same it is similar to the taste of watercress.
• Pansy/Viola: edible flowers/mild, slightly sweet, and grassy flavor, with a wintergreen overtone if you eat the whole flower.