Looking to the future, by studying the history of edible flowers

Flowers have provided comfort to humans for millennia. Imbued with aesthetic value and symbolic meaning, they have long been present in funeral rituals, feasts, offerings, and songs. Carriers of aesthetic beauty, they are used as adornments in physical spaces, as decorations through flower arrangements, as well as appearing in paintings, ceramics, perfumery and fabrics. It is important to recognise the nutritional and gastronomic possibilities of flowers. This historical review draws attention to the use of flowers in foods by highlighting their versatility in different parts of the world and in a variety of culinary contexts. Although few people would currently appear to consider flowers as edible, many flowers contain positive bioactive (e.g., anti-oxidant health) properties; they are sometimes also nutritionally beneficial. A few flowers have a pleasant taste/flavour, and a number of species provide an effective and natural means of enhancing the eye-appeal of a dish (such as when used in salads) as far as ‘gastroporn’ is considered. In fact, a closer analysis reveals that different flowers can be used to effectively stimulate/engage many of the consumer's senses. In this narrative historical review, the literature documenting the deliberate incorporation of flowers in the context of food and drink are reviewed. By highlighting some of the gastronomic possibilities associated with edible flowers as well as drawing attention to their frequent use in a historical context, the hope is that it may be possible to nudge more consumers to reconsider this ubiquitous, but currently largely untapped, food resource. Innovative chefs may be in the best position to help change the attitudes of consumers, given than most people currently do not seem to consider/categorize flowers as an edible resource.