Introduction

I spent the first part of my life in Southern Africa, where a member of my family owned a plant nursery (they still do!). I spent my school vacations among the neat rows of plants with my cousin Sharon, who taught me everything I know and love about gardening. Bush crafting and foraging were a natural part of my daily life.

I took up cooking at age eight at the stove in the indoor kitchen and over the fire in the outdoor kitchen. When I was a teen, I lived in a tropical region. Little gray vervet monkeys visited our yard daily to raid the banana, guava and mango trees. It was from them that I learned that many of my favorite garden flowers were edible. My two great loves, gardening and cooking, were now one, and I have been cooking with flowers ever since.

These days, I live in a cedar wood in the heart of Ontario, Canada. It smells sweet in the spring, and sweeter still in the July heat. Three little creeks wind their way through the trees on my property, crossing over, joining, separating and generally babbling gleefully. On their banks grow elderberries and marsh marigolds.

At the edge of the wood is a meadow, which constantly changes its summer frocks thanks to the sky blue of the spring-flowering viper’s bugloss, the summer’s delicate white Queen Anne’s lace and the stunning pink and purple fall asters.

I have always had a strong bond with nature. Flowers are a particular favorite of mine, but the deep, dark shade of a wood and the way flowing creek water slips over a fallen log are equally momentous for me. The natural world has been a constant source of joy, peace and wonder, and my greatest desire is to share this love with you. I want you to feel the deep calm of the old-growth trees, the restfulness of a slow-moving river and the love the animals and the plants have for you. Yes, you love nature, and it loves you right back.

I love the ephemeral nature of flowers—it forces you to slow down and smell them, because you know that tomorrow they’ll be gone. One way for me to extend the wonder of flowers and to bring the natural world into your home is by sharing my favorite flower recipes with you.

This book is for the flower smellers, the dandelion blowers and the daisy-chain weavers. It’s also for the pillow-fort architects, watermelon seed-spitting champions and breakfast chocolate cake aficionados. It is for everyonewho loves the fleeting beauty of the rose because they understand there is nothing like the absence of flowers in the winter to make the heart grow fonder in the spring. To all who love to grow flowers, enjoy good food and feel the sunshine on their faces, this book is for you. . .

Nikki