Pansy Crepes | Edible Flower Pancakes
Right outside my kitchen door are pots of my favorite herbs and edible flowers; all within easy reach, any time I want to use them while cooking. Just this weekend, I made pansy crepes with my brightly colored viola and pansies and served them with a zesty orange marmalade. Good morning, Sunshine!
Pansies and violas are wonderful edible flowers. Although they have no particular taste, they are highly decorative and retain their pretty colors when cooked lightly. These pansy petal pancakes are a unique pancake idea for those days when I want to make breakfast a little extra special. So easy to to make and almost too pretty to eat!
How to Harvest Pansies for Recipes using Edible Flowers
- Select pansies or violas that are fully open, fresh and not wilted. The best time to harvest is in the cool mornings before they begin to fade and wilt in the heat of the sun.
- Snip the flowers off under the flower head and collect them in a bowl filled with cold water.
- Rinse them gently under running water.
- Then place them in a bowl of cool, salted water. Swish them around to loosen any debris and/or bugs. Let them soak for 5 minutes.
- Then rinse again in fresh, cool water. Store in a bowl of fresh water in the fridge. They should remain fresh for 4-5 days in the fridge.
How to Store Fresh Edible Flowers
If your recipe using edible flowers calls for a lot of pansies, you can harvest and collect pansies over 4-5 days and store them in a bowl of water in the refrigerator until time to use them.
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| Harvested pansies and violas remain fresh stored in a bowl of cold water in the refrigerator |
How to Make Pansy Crepes or Pansy Petal Pancakes
This is such an easy way to dress up crepes for a special breakfast.
1. Make the crepe/pancake batter (my recipe is at the end of this post).
2. Pour the crepe batter into a greased pan and swirl to create a thin pancake.
3. Before the batter completely sets, place pansies and violas face up on the batter and press down lightly into the batter.
Tip: Snip off as much of the flower stem, sepals, calyx and receptacle (the green back portion of the flower) as possible to allow the pansy to lay as flat as possible in the crepe.
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| Fried crepes with pansies and violas |
4. Once the edges of the crepe begin to become lacy and frilly, flip the crepe out into a plate. There is not need to fry the other side of the crepe. This way the edible flowers retain their pretty colors.
5. Don't stack hot crepes but leave each crepe to cool in a single layer. When cool, fold in four (flowers facing outwards) and serve along with a refreshing marmalade for a sweeeeet breakfast. Bon appetit!
6. For a savory version, use these pansy crepes as the wrapper to make edible flower spring rolls. Try my recipe for stuffing these pansy crepes with scrambled eggs and chives to make Crepe Parcels.
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| Stuffed Chive Blossom and Pansy Crepes |
Pansy Crepe or Pansy Pancakes | Recipe using Edible Flowers
Ingredients:
Make 6-7 pancakes
For the pancake batter:
☐ 1/2 cup white all purpose flour
☐ 1 egg
☐ 1 cup milk
☐ 2 teaspoons sugar
☐ A drop of vanilla essence
☐ 2 tablespoons water for consistency
☐ Butter for frying
☐ Fresh violas and pansies
Step-by-Step Instructions:
Step 1: Harvest and Prep Pansy and Viola Flowers
- Gather pansy and viola flowers. Wash well in cold water. Soak in salted water for a few minutes and rinse.
- Snip off as much of the stem, sepals/calyx and receptacle of the flower (the green back portion of the flower). Separate petals, if desired. Set aside in a bowl of cold water until ready to use.
Step 2: Fry Crepes with Edible Flowers
- In a bowl, lightly whisk together the egg, flour, milk, water, sugar and salt to make a smooth crepe batter.
- Heat a griddle or frying pan, smear with butter. Then add about 1/4 cup of batter to the pan and swirl to create a thin crepe. Sprinkle quickly with edible flowers and petals (face up) before the crepe sets. Push the flowers lightly into the batter as the batter sets.
- Cook uncovered, until the edges of the crepe begin to crisp up, become frilly and leave the pan. Use a wooden spatula to loosen the crepe from the pan. No need to flip the crepe. Just turn it over onto a plate.
- Set aside to cool. Do not stack hot crepes.
Step 3: Serve
Once the Pansy Crepes are cool, fold in four (flower side outwards) and serve along with a bright, citrusy marmalade.
Related Recipes:
Wondering how else to used edible pansy and viola flowers? Try sugaring them to create edible candied flowers.
And if you like crepes, try my Anglo Indian Pan Roll recipe for pancakes stuffed with grated coconut and sugar.
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