How to Candy Flowers
Flowers add bright color to desserts, cakes, and other plates. For dishes where a little extra sweetness would be welcome, a great trick to increase their visual appeal is to candy them (candied flowers are also known as sugar glazed flowers or sometimes “crystallized flowers”). To candy flowers you will need edible flowers, egg whites, a pastry brush and granulated sugar.
Use the Right Ingredients for Success
Flowers: Be sure to use only edible flowers for this technique (we’re using edible orchids here). Not all flower varieties are naturally safe for human consumption, and many flowers sold in shops have been sprayed with chemicals that aren’t safe to eat.
We’ve found sturdier flowers like orchids, edible roses, garlic blossoms, and edible rose petals are easier to candy then varieties with thin, very soft petals. Pansies and borage blossoms can work well, but take more practice.
Note: Even when candied, edible roses & petals are more for decoration than consumption.
Sugar: Though you could use conventional sugar, we highly recommend superfine sugar for candying flowers as the tiny crystals give better coverage and shine.
Egg Whites: For extra safety (and convenience) we recommend using pasteurized egg whites (usually sold in cartons).
DIRECTIONS
1
2
Either dip the flowers in the egg white (this works better with large petals than whole flowers) or brush the egg whites onto the flowers using a pastry brush.
3
Dip the flowers in sugar or sprinkle sugar over the top (sprinkling takes more time, but usually gives better results). Shake off the excess.
4
5
6