Wild Violet Recipes – Jelly, Sugared Flowers, Ice Cream and More
Wild violets burst open in early spring and exhibit varying shades of white to deep purple. I have always eagerly awaited this moment, I love using wild violets in recipes in my kitchen! Violets are edible picked right from the stem and have a musky, floral taste with a sweet kick at the end.
Some of my earliest childhood memories of spring are going picking for violets with my mom and sisters and filling baskets and jars (much like the one pictured above!) with delicate violet flowers in preparation for violet jelly and wild violet simple syrup. All foraged flowers were brought home and canned into jelly. I still make a small batch of jelly every year, boiling the violet petals down to a bubbling, indigo syrup mash on my stove top.
The Very Act of Violet Flower Picking, In Itself Is As Much A Part of Any Recipe, As the Final Resulting Culinary Creation.
Over the years I have found so many uses uses for my wild violet flower harvest and tried out many different techniques, some successes, some absolute failures and utter disappointment, I have of course on more than one occasion, overboiled my jelly completely into a not quite hard candy like substance and wasted hours of flower picking in the process.
Using wild violets in the kitchen
Below are some of my favorite ways to incorporate violates into edible ice creams, make flower ice cubes and a canning recipe for violet jelly, so the sweet flavors of spring can be enjoyed all year long.
Violet Flower Ice Cubes
Use Violet flowers in ice cubes! Any flower frozen in ice will immediately add appeal to any punch bowl, rocks glass or simple pitcher of ice water. I made these by filling my ice balls half way, allowing to freeze completely, layering my violet flowers onto frozen portion and filling the ice ball the rest of the way. This technique keeps the flowers suspended in the center of the ice sphere and created a beautiful effect when served in a glass with a cocktail. Try freezing violets into ice cubes for a pitcher of rhubarb rose sangria or or drop one into a floral gin cocktail.
Floral White Tea and Violet Cold Brew
Infuse your own cold brewed white tea filled with the floral essence of fresh, wild violets. This technique is simple and does not require heat or any cooking at all. This edible flower infusion steeps into a rosy hued beverage. Here is my post on Floral Cold brewed White Tea with Fresh Violets.
Violet Panna Cotta with Sugared Violets
This springtime dessert is an elegant end to any meal. Violet panna cotta is filled with cream and freshly foraged wild violet flowers, add a sugared violet on top to complete this floral dessert.
Violet Jelly
The old classic! Where my passion for violet flowers began! I love to have a batch of violet jelly in my cupboard for those special occasions where plain old strawberry or a crisp, tart curd just won’t do. This jelly is versatile and can be spread on rose butter cookies, a light sponge cake ( I prefer angel food, the airy cake and the flowery jelly are a match made in heaven) or toast. When making the jelly the vibrant indigo color will fade as the citric acid or lemon juice is added. To combat this, you can add food coloring if you would like a deeply shaded of purple jelly. I personally don’t have a preference and have made this jelly both ways and the results are always delicious. If you love cooking with florals, these Chamomile Honey Madeleines are another gentle, flower-forward recipe worth keeping in your spring rotation.
Sugared Violet Flowers
Sugar coating is another classic preparation of freshly picked wild violet flowers. This technique takes time to dry, so if you are making these for a special occasion, plan accordingly and let dry overnight. These sugared violets add an elegant, Victorian Era touch when used as a garnish on cookies, cakes and baked goods. Or try adding onto the rim of a cocktail for a more tropical look. These candied flowers are a bit labor intensive and can feel tedious to create, however the result is spectacular and well worth the effort.
My technique for sugared wild violets is straight forward and simple. learn How to Make Sugared Violets.
Wild Violet Flower Ice Cream
This is such a simple way to incorporate violets into a dessert, take vanilla ice cream mix with violet flowers and serve! For the image above I layered some violets onto the bottom of a teacup I had lined with plastic wrap, I mixed my vanilla ice cream with wild violets in a separate bowl. Then I patted the ice cream into the cup and let refreeze for an hour before turning out onto a plate. Mixing the flowers with creamy, sweet ice cream really allows the flavor of the violets to shine and is a simple, easy way to use edible violets in a dessert.
More Fresh Violet Uses…
Blueberry Tart Sprinkled with Violet Jelly and Freshly Picked Wild Violets
A jar of violet jelly adds a touch of flowery sweetness to a creme filled tart. I sprinkled fresh violets over the dessert just before serving and results we’re enjoyed by everyone a the community dinner this was served to!
A Jar of Violet Jelly with Freshly Baked Lavender Cookies Waiting to be Filled with Dollops of Floral Goodness
I used a simple thumbprint recipe to start, rolling the cookie dough balls in a mix of crushed lavender and sugar before pressing with my finger. I baked these and let them cool completely before filling with my violet jelly.
After years of working with violets in the kitchen here are few lessons I have learned:
Violets have a very delicate flavor and are fragile ingredients to use in the kitchen. If you noticed in the entire post the only recipe I have where heat is used with violets is the jelly. Even in that recipe, the hot water and violets are immediately removed from the burner and allowed to seep and cool. I personally prefer not to use violets directly in baking or stovetop cooking applications. The flavor of violets is extremely delicate and if you overheat them you will damage the floral essence of your floral harvest! Instead I like to use wild violets in cold recipes. The flavor shines much brighter and the musky, almost honey like sweetness really comes thru.
If this post has you excited about cooking with foraged flowers, head over to the full Floral Recipes collection, there is always something in season worth picking.
I hope you enjoyed this floral filled post as much as I have enjoyed writing it! If you have any other recipes or see a technique or use for violet flowers I have not gone over, please leave a comment below and let me know. Happy Picking!
Spring foraging season moves quickly and there is always something new to find. Pea shoots and ramps arrive first, followed by morel mushrooms, fiddlehead ferns and knotweed as the season builds. If wild violets have you curious about what else is out there this time of year, the full spring foraging guide covers every ingredient I reach for in the Hudson Valley – when to find it, what it tastes like and what to make with it.
→ A Spring Foraging Guide – Ramps, Morels, Fiddleheads, Violets and More
If you’re just getting started with spring foraging, these are good places to go next:
– Everything You Need to Know About Ramps
– Pea Shoots: How to Use, Cook and Preserve
– Creamy Morel Mushroom Toast
– Crispy Fiddlehead Ferns with Zesty Lemon
I use culinary lavender lot and I have used pansies in leafy green salads. They are typically available at Whole Foods mid spring.