There's a Rose in My Soup

Excellent tip on how to make the rose petals into candied flowers, Jeanne. I had not heard this before, but I have seen rose petals used in a pasta dish. Here in Dallas, we girls have the Neiman Marcus cookbook No Jacket Required in our kitchens. It has a recipe called Rose-Lime Pasta: butter, lime juice, Parmesan cheese and 2 organically grown roses. May I call your attention to the passionate book Like Water for Chocolate, in which the heroine Tita prepares Quail in Rose Petal Sauce (and calls for 12 roses, preferrably red)?

And I quote, "When Pedro tasted his first mouthful, he couldn't help closing his eyes in voluptuous delight and exclaiming: "It is a dish for the gods!"

What a delicious notion, and if we're ever at a culinary impasse, I suggest we cook our way through Laura Esquivel's "novel in monthly installments." It's gorgeously written and would help us spice things up a bit. Cut loose. Shed tears with our onions as well follow her recipes, romances and home remedies.

It's fall in Dallas, so we still have blooming roses, as you see in this shot from my daughter's bedroom window, compete with curvy garden hose. 

This week I'll talk with a woman who's passionate about organic gardening and has turned her metier into an outstanding product line. Let's ask her how her garden grows, and whether she eats the flowers.