Serendib Kitchen

One of the interesting aspects of working with edible flowers is the question of ‘what does edible mean, exactly?’ There are lots of plants where if you consume a large amount, it may make you ill, but a few petals won’t hurt you at all.

I’m not a doctor, or an herbal expert, so generally if you see me using flowers in cooking, please don’t take it as an assurance that you can just go ahead and cook with them willy-nilly — do your own research! And please take extra care if you’re pregnant.

But all that said, a few petals of mountain bluet (centaurea montana), considered an astringent herb, are lovely on a lime & rosewater shortbread cookie, and according to Texas A&M University, the flowers are edible. I think you’d be safe scattering a few petals in a salad as well. I wouldn’t make a stir-fry from the plant, though!

“An astringent herb, its flowers have been used as an ingredient for eye ailments such as conjunctivitis and corneal ulcers as well as for minor wounds and ulcers of the mouth. Flowers are edible. Extracts of the plant are used in shampoos and conditioners. Dry flowers for pot pourris. Centaurea is named for Chiron, a centaur known for his herb knowledge and who first introduced Centaurea as a healing plant.”

https://aggie-hort.tamu.edu/…/pla…/Centaureamontana.html

Recipe here: https://serendibkitchen.com/…/lime-rosewater…/

The tamarind lends a complex fruity note to these chocolate scones, and the cayenne is just enough to leave a little heat on the tongue. You can, of course, skip the cayenne if you’d prefer!

(If you don’t have a mini scone pan, you can cut and shape these by hand, and bake on a regular baking sheet, placing them quite close together. If you pop them in the freezer for 30 minute before baking, they’ll hold shape better.)

2 3/4 cups flour
1/3 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 cup cold butter

2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/2 T tamarind paste
2 T unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 cup milk
1/2 t. cayenne
1/2 c. chocolate chips for drizzling

1. Preheat oven to 375F. Spray mini scone pan with Baker’s Joy (or butter and flour pan, which will be kind of a pain).

2. Mix dry ingredients in a large bowl. Chop butter in small pieces and cut into flour with a pastry cutter (or with your fingers) until mixture resembles coarse meal. (It’s fine to have small lumps.)

3. In a medium bowl, combine remaining 5 scone ingredients, beating eggs lightly. Pour into dry mixture and stir with a fork until a soft dough forms.

4. Turn out onto a lightly floured board and knead a few times. Cut into 16 equal pieces and press into the cavities of the pan.

5. Bake 20-25 or until medium brown. Let cool 20 minutes in pan, then remove from pan to wire rack and cool completely. Serve warm, with coffee or tea.

6. Optional: Chocolate drizzle. Melt chocolate in double boiler on stovetop or on low power in microwave, stirring every 30 seconds until melted. Drizzle chocolate (spooning it into a pastry bag or plastic bag with the tip cut off makes it easier) over the top, and let dry until set. (Or, if you want it more indulgent, dip the scones in melted chocolate!)

Mostly me, but with some help from Kavi and Kevin. Not perfect — the icing was a little too liquid, so some blurring of the details. But the overall effect will be charming, and this is just for friends and family, so it’s fine.

Well, I didn’t get through ALL the computer work on my list, but the vast majority of it, and I got an extension on the last thing ’til tomorrow, so when my brain starting melting at 3 p.m. — teatime is usually about my limit — I switched to baking for Kavi’s party instead.

Kevin mixed up the cookie dough and the royal icing, and I got to do the fun parts. One cookie done, another fifty or so to go…

Collected redbuds yesterday and made redbud syrup — I think I have enough to include one in each of the spring treat boxes (which I’m finally getting ready to ship out). (Had a nice chat with a neighbor while collecting redbuds, whose five-year-old was delightedly running around the fairy garden parts — hi, Savannah!)

I’m feeling very kitchen / garden witchy this morning — pictured below, dandelion syrup, muscari syrup, and lots of redbud syrup. Use them in cocktails / mocktails, drizzled on pancakes or ice cream, etc. and so on.

(makes 24 muffins, or 48 mini muffins)

You can skip the redbud blossoms in this riff on classic morning glory muffins, and it’ll still be delicious. But they do add a lovely note — redbud blossoms taste a little like fresh peas, sweetly vegetal, which you’d think might be an odd thing to put in a muffin, but combined with carrot and apple and pistachio and sultana and spices, trust me — it’s delicious.

I tried three options for incorporating the redbud blossoms — you can just stir them in, you can sprinkle some on top with the sugar and bake, or you can make a lime glaze to add after the muffins are baked and cooled, and then sprinkle some on top.

For a fancy tea party, I’d go with the last option, just because it’s so pretty, and the lime is a nice contrasting note. For my kids’ weekly muffins that they grab as they’re running out the door, options one and two work great!

Ingredients:

1/2 c. jaggery or dark brown sugar
1/4 c. honey
3 eggs
1/2 cup yogurt
1/2 cup milk
6 T butter, melted
1 t. vanilla extract
2 c. shredded carrots
1 c. shredded / grated apple (about 1 large)

2 c. flour
1 1/2 t. baking powder
1 1/2 t. cinnamon
1/2 t. ground ginger
1/4 t. ground cloves
3/4 t. salt
1/2 c. sultanas (golden raisins)
1/2 c. chopped roasted pistachios

1 c. redbud blossoms, stems removed
nonstick baking spray
sugar for sprinkling, or lime glaze

lime glaze (optional):
1 1/2 c. powdered sugar
1 T. lime juice
1 t. vanilla
2-3 T milk

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Combine sugar, honey, eggs, yogurt, milk, melted butter, and vanilla extract, beating until well blended.

2. Add carrots and apple and mix well.

3. In a separate large bowl, combine flour, baking powder, cinnamon, ground ginger, ground cloves, and salt.

4. Pour wet ingredients into dry ingredients, stir a few times to combine, then add sultanas and pistachios. Fold together until just combined.

5. Fold in redbud blossoms (reserving 1/4 c. for sprinkling if desired).

6. Spray muffin pan with nonstick spray, and distribute the batter into muffin cups, filling approximately 3/4 of the way for full-size muffins, or filling completely for mini muffins.

7. Sprinkle top of muffins lightly with sugar. Sprinkle with redbud blossoms, if desired (will be faded, but visible).

8. Bake for 35 minutes (or 13-15 minutes for mini muffins), until testing tooth pick comes out clean.

9. Cool for at least 10 minutes; cool completely if glazing.

10. If using, make glaze — combine glaze ingredients, and drizzle over cooled muffins. Sprinkle with reserved redbud blossoms, and let set before serving.