Pansy

Viola x wittrockiana · Edible flower

40 pairings

The pansy (Viola x wittrockiana) is a low, cool-season garden plant whose large, five-petalled flowers — often patterned with a dark central "face" — are edible. Mild and faintly grassy-sweet, the blooms are used whole as a garnish, candied, or pressed flat into cakes, shortbread and laminated pasta.

Picking a good onedrag

Just opened, velvety and springyLimp and see-through, browning at the edges

Punnet freshRaw and whole: petals, sepals and buds, scattered over the plate. Check the label says pansy or viola, as African violet is not food.Everyday best

Where it came fromFrom a grower who sells it to be eaten, not to be planted out

The petalsColour still strong, the outer petals just starting to soften

The flower in the handSofter under the thumb, slower to spring back open

Smell at the punnetNo scent to speak of, which is normal, and the air is dry

What to look for, from just opened, velvety and springy to limp and see-through, browning at the edges.

Preparing