Are rosemary flowers edible? The answer is absolutely yes. They are a delicious ingredient that you can add to tea or salads, but they also have numerous beneficial properties. Let’s find out together what all their uses are.
(Read also: If you drink a cup of rosemary water a day, the side effect on your brain is incredible (study)
Benefits of rosemary flowers
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What parts of the rosemary plant are edible? We already know that rosemary leaves are edible, but now you know that you can also start using its flowers in the kitchen. Before eating them, however, you must make sure to remove the peduncle, i.e. the “green calyx” located at the base of the flower. You may also notice that rosemary flowers have a decidedly more intense flavor than the leaves, sometimes even tending towards sweet. To make sure you use them best in your recipes, you’d better taste them before adding them to your dishes, so you’ll be sure that their particular flavor goes perfectly with what you’re preparing. However, be careful not to eat the rosemary stems, as they are quite difficult to chew due to their woody consistency.
As we had already mentioned, rosemary has various beneficial properties for our health, which are naturally also transmitted to its flowers. For one thing, rosemary has antiseptic, antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. Flowers can also help you:
In some academic studies it has also been shown that rosemary can help you improve concentration. However, you need to be careful, because ingesting large quantities of rosemary can also pose some risks to your health, such as stomach pain, vomiting or intestinal irritation.
Rosemary flowers can be used in the kitchen in various ways, you can put them in tea or use them as a condiment, but there are also more creative and unexpected uses, let’s see some of them.
Use the flowers as a condiment
One thing you absolutely need to know about rosemary flowers is that they don’t tolerate heat, so use them as a finishing dressing. Rosemary flowers season grilled meat beautifully, but you can also use them alongside beans or with other herbs and flavors such as garlic, onion, lavender and thyme.
Use the flowers with potpourri
When making potpourri, you can add rosemary flowers, so you will get a better fragrance and also a beautiful color. You will have a composition that will beautify and perfume your home in a natural way.
Use flowers together with bouquets
There’s no need to say it, but rosemary flowers (being flowers, in fact) can give that extra touch of class to your bouquets. Rosemary flowers are long-lasting and go well with most floral arrangements.
Use the flowers together with the butter
Definitely one of the most original uses, you can blend rosemary flowers together with Grana Padano cheese and salt and you will get a delicious butter that can be spread on toast and sandwiches.
Use the flowers with flavored water
Water flavored with herbs and fruits is not only thirst quenching but also very healthy. Add one or two sprigs of rosemary with flowers and enjoy your drink at any time of the day.
Use the flowers to flavor oils and salt
Another refined use of rosemary flowers is to flavor extra virgin olive oils or homemade vinegars, obtaining condiments with an intense and particular aroma. Likewise, you can mix them with coarse salt to create an aromatic salt to use in cooking, perfect for flavoring meats, vegetables and bruschetta.
Use the flowers in desserts
Although rosemary is traditionally associated with savory dishes, its flowers also lend themselves surprisingly well to desserts, thanks to their slightly sweet note. You can use them to decorate cakes, biscuits or panna cotta, or to prepare an artisanal syrup to add to lemonade and cocktails, giving an aromatic and original touch to your drinks.
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