Thunder storms raged through last night and with them came a deluge of rain. The noise on the skylights throughout the house was incredible and the water that poured through the overwhelmed eavestroughs was absolutely torrential.
Michael and I had planned to have supper in the gazebo but that was a wash… We hurried to bring everything back inside, juggling plates, cutlery, glasses and an umbrella.
This morning dawned bright and beautiful. Armed with my cup of coffee I went out to inspect my peonies. I have several borders of them; beautiful fragrant white blooms, some are shot through with pinks and reds and some have a light yellow interior. I only have one plant though that gives me scarlet flowers. This is the one I was concerned about. These are the blooms that give me that beautiful color for my jelly.
Unbeknown to most, peony petals are edible. Their taste is floral, with a little fruity tartness thrown in. I discovered this several years ago now and have since used them to make jelly with (of course). I use mostly white blooms for their fragrance, with just a couple of scarlet ones for color.
To my dismay, only two scarlet flowers remained with their petals intact and one unceremoniously spilled itself in my basket after I harvested it. So that’s it; this will be the last batch of peony jelly I make this year.
But that’s ok. There will be more peonies next year. And the rain was sorely needed. The grass is lush and green. The vegetable garden is thriving and the new flower garden I put in two weeks ago is looking happy.
While taking pictures for this blog I realized that there were several stowaway ants in with the peonies – can you spot that guy at the top? Life is like that. We’re just minding our own business, doing our best with what we’ve got, when along comes the unexpected and throws us somewhere new. We have to scramble to figure out what just happened and how the heck do we adjust? I think that’s the beauty of life; finding ways to keep moving forward into the unknown, and doing it with grace and agility. Sometimes we can do it alone, often we need a helping hand. Offer that helping hand when you can.
Be kind to yourself today friend, and I hope you try my Peony Jelly, it is in limited supply. You can place an order online or come find me in person at the BEAU Market on Friday, June 18th from 3 to 6 pm in the Beaurepaire Village.
And though I was the reason they found themselves in my basket, I made sure the stowaways found their way safely out!
Do you know of any other edible flowers? Let me know in the comments section below.
