Fried Acacia and Elderflower Blossoms

---

There are accounts that the Romans and Greeks added edible flowers to salads, and also ate candied flowers such as acacia, elderflower, nasturtium, cornflower, and zucchini blossoms.

In the 15th century, the Italian philosopher and gastronomy scholar Bartolomeo Sacchi devoted a long chapter in his treatise De Honesta Voluptate to recipes for edible flowers, fruits, and bitter herbs fried in tempura batter.

In 1555, Nostradamus wrote the first book describing recipes using flowers. Later, Leonardo da Vinci wrote in his culinary notes that, in his opinion, the only flowers worth eating were fried zucchini blossoms — dipped in a mixture of water and flour to make them crispy.

Fried flowers were enjoyed in the Balkans, Italy, and Provence.

In the 20th century, eating flowers fried in tempura batter with chilled white wine became very fashionable. Today, the largest producers of edible flowers are Israel and America.

Edible flowers are increasingly finding their place in modern cuisine.

---