Although the whole year is good for preparing recipes with flowers, spring is especially suitable to obtain more quantity and more variety.
The options are broadened and new culinary ideas are emerging that include flowers of all kinds as colourful ingredients.
We love discovering the appearance and the smells and flavours brought by flowers.In salty dishes and sweet desserts, in soft recipes and in more intense preparations: in any proposal, a flower contributes to extend the sensorialexperience.
How do flowers harmonize with wine? Many pairings offer an original surprise and bring out a new sense of pleasure.We have experimented this with our two Conde de los Andes wines and these are the flowers and recipes that have excited us:
Conde de los Andes Blanco 2015
Our white of viura harmonizes ideally with soft white flowers and citrus memories.Two good options are jasmine and basil flower: with roasted fish they offer a fresh touch, between acidic and perfumed at the same time, which complements the subtle marine depth.The basil flower also goes perfectly with green salads.
If we opt for more complex elaborations, the stuffed flowers are highly recommended.We think for example of zucchini flower with a stuffing of cod or gladiolus petals with a creamy cheese.With these dishes, the Conde de los Andes white brings its surrounding personality and a nerve capable of magnifying flavors and sensations.An authentic delight.
And we end with a very summery proposal: an almond cream or a white vegetables soup (a vichyssoise, for example) combines marvelously with the calendula petals and its spicy, pleasant and surprising tones.
Conde de los Andes Tinto 2015
Reds such as our Conde de los Andes, complex and deep and at the same time fresh, with the presence of fruit and full of energy, are great companions of dishes that have blue flowers with a spicy taste, like lilac.A poultry recipe such as coq-au-vin, for example, with the base of an intense sauce and seasoned at the end with some lilacs, gains very refreshing citrus details.
Blueish lavender also reveals perfect to accompany beef roasts, providing an interesting mix of traditional touches and modern nuances.But the palette can be extended perfectly to other colors.The paradigmatic example can be the red rose, whose petals are used in recipes of exotic inspiration such as couscous or lamb stews typical to North Africa.
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We end with a list of brief tips that encourage us to prepare floral dishes:
- Know how to choose: You always have to buy edible flowers, never decorative ones. And avoid using wild flowers.
- Clean the flowers: They should be cleaned lightly with water and carefully remove the stamens and pistils to avoid bitterness. They should be dried with absorbent paper.
- Conservation: They can be stored in the fridge for a maximum of one week, in a container with a small air inlet.
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