Letter E The A to Z of TV Gardening

Hello, and welcome to The A To Z Of TV Gardening.

Our next subject may leave you unable to look at your garden in the same way ever again.

It's all about eating,

because this E is for edible gardens,

and it's time for another encounter with Jay Rayner.

Just marvel at these beautiful nasturtiums,

and these violas are simply stunning this time of year.

I'm a man who's not ashamed to admit how much he loves flowers

but I am not bidding for a job on Gardeners' World.

In my book, flowers are for eating.

In today's top restaurants, meals with flowers are very trendy,

unlike my food hygiene hat.

Now, major supermarkets are also offering

new ranges of salads with flowers.

It may sound a tad surreal, but there's a long culinary heritage behind cooking with flowers.

There are references to dandelions being eaten in the Old Testament

and the Victorians ate candied violets.

But what are today's flower foodies eating?

Normally, you grow salad leaves.

When somebody came to you and said I'd like you to grow flowers for food, what did you think?

I thought they were mad. But we were convinced when we started eating them ourselves.

We understood there's some colour and flavour that we can get from those leaves, so why not?

Are there any differences between the kinds of flowers you're growing here?

The violas, we've worked with our customer to make sure they actually get into the pack

and are looking good by the time the consumer gets them.

We are struggling with the nasturtiums.

They are a very delicate leaf with a lot of shape and structure,

and to wash those is quite hard at the moment.

But we are hoping we will get there maybe later this summer.

Flowers are all very pretty in their place

and there's no doubt that we eat with our eyes first, but do these

really amount to anything more than decoration on a plate?

Yorkshire-born chef Charlie Lakin is preparing me a real treat today.

There's mackerel salad with nasturtium

and a creme brulee with gorse-flower syrup.

Tell me, flowers and cookery, is it merely about what it looks like or does it have an important flavour?

I think first and foremost it's about flavour rather than the appearance.

It always looks great on a plate, but you should always look to flavour first.

-How long have you been cooking with flowers?

-Pretty much all my life.

My mum used to use them a lot in salads and making wine and jams and things like that.

It's a really exciting time of year as a chef.

Once your blossoms are coming in and your flowers,

summer is going to be here soon, and you'll be running around like an idiot!

So time to find out if flower power really delivers on taste.

The nasturtiums really are peppery, aren't they? They cut through it.

And it's a bit floral, if I'm allowed to say that. I hope I am.

-I would say so, yes.

-Creme brulee time. Good crack.

It's this sort of grassy, earthy taste, isn't it?

It's a bit like chamomile leaves.

There's a little bit of bitterness right at the back as well.

You are left with a finish of the gorse flowers, and it just lingers.

I would never have thought of flavouring a creme brulee with gorse flowers like that.

It's fantastic stuff. Thank you very much.

I'm not surprised that flowers can be delicious.

Their uses and flavours have been well documented in culinary history.

What surprises me is that they've taken a backseat in British cookery for so long.

Beware, British gardeners, the foodies are coming.

Mmm, lunch!

Lots of ideas there, so I hope you are feeling inspired.

That's all from us for now.

Join me next time for some more top tips on The A To Z Of TV Gardening.

Bye for now.