DIY: Glittering Flower Petals

Our contributor, Miso of Miso Bakes, is sharing a fabulous new tutorial perfect for summer…

The first thing that comes to mind when I think of summer is not barbecues or lemonades or days spent at the beach, but rather William Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream.  Several years back I had the opportunity to watch the play at the Globe Theater in London.  I do not recall much about the cast nor their interpretation of the text, but I do recall a particular scene in the woods where the fairies danced around stage while sprinkling glitter and flower petals everywhere.

Personally, summer seems far more magical than spring.  Perhaps it is because summer is camping season.  There is something magical about huddling around a campfire in the middle of the deep dark woods, listening to the crickets chirp, and getting a subtle whiff of sweet flowers with hints of mildew every now and then.  Now replace all the mosquitoes with lightening bugs and voila, you’re in a fairytale.

Here is my simple ode to Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream.  Inspired by the glitter and flower petals from the play, I decided to use crystallized flower petals as my decorating medium.

Crystallized Flower Petals
a tutorial by Miso Bakes

1. Purchase edible flowers from the grocery store (I bought mine at Whole Food’s). Make sure they are chemical and pesticide free.  If you would like to use flowers from your garden, check this link to see that your flowers are safe for consumption.
2. Gently rinse the petals in cool water and pat dry.  Carefully separate the petals.
3. In a bowl, crack two egg whites.  I used pasteurized eggs, but I went further and added two tablespoons of sugar to the egg whites and whisked them over a pot of simmering water until hot to touch and all the sugar granules had dissolved.  Slightly cool.  (This step does not guarantee that it will kill off any trace of remaining bacteria. I just did it to make the egg whites more fluid.)
4. Using a brush or your fingers, rub each petal with egg whites.
5. Carefully sprinkle superfine (or granulated) sugar to both sides.
6. Set petals on a cooling rack or a sheet pan lined with a silpat or parchment paper lightly sprayed with non-stick spray.
7. Once finished, you may air dry the petals (may take up to a full day) or place them in a 100 F oven for a few hours until dry.

You may use these flowers to garnish cakes, cookies, cupcakes, lemonades, and cocktails!

{Because crystallized flower petals contain raw egg whites, small children, the elderly, pregnant women, and those with an illness should consume the flowers with caution.}

To continue on with the floral theme,  I used these to garnish a lemon-vanilla bean cake sandwiched between buttercream and a thin layer of rose petal jelly I bought during my travels in France.  Enjoy!