I’m ok with a little rain, but don’t damage any of these, please!
Monday, June 3, 7 am:
Well, everyone in my house is now tired of hearing me go on about the rose parade going on in our yard – it’s like a party to me, but no one else really shares the enthusiasm. My son, Ryan arrived home from London on Sunday after a semester abroad and was nice enough to make a positive comment – I appreciated that! As the day wore on Sunday, I realized there was indeed a chance of a thunder shower and wondered if the party was indeed over. Wondered is just the more balanced word I am going to use – actually I worried more than a little. I am just such a sucker for the color going on here right now and don’t want it to end. If there would be two things that I wait for all year long, it is the colors in the landscape and, you know, the peach crop. And so, my tendency is to hold onto the whole scene for as long as possible.
A couple of weeks ago I got a new book that I felt was totally in tune with my interests. It is called The Artist The Cook and The Gardener by Maryjo Koch. This is a life, like the one of Jane Adler in It’s Complicated, where she has this gorgeous garden and owns a bakery in Santa Barbara, that I could embody in a heartbeat. Maryjo is a painter, which, unfortunately, I have little talent for, tho wish for, and she is a gardener and a cook/baker. What more could you ask for? Anyway, have enjoyed reading it and, truth be told, the recipe which most struck me was that for Rose Petal Syrup – page 126-127. I read about this about a month ago and parked it in the back of my mind.
Sunday, as I was out snapping another big collection of pictures, I got to thinking about this. The recipe calls for, of course, unsprayed and fragrant roses, needed to be collected in early morning when the fragrance is most abundant, and so I expected to start this off first thing this morning. When I got up at 5:45, it was wet outside and still is. Can I pick these roses when it’s wet outside? I don’t know – so I went off and looked around on the internet and emailed Maryjo. Right now I am waiting for the answer. This project may have to wait until tomorrow.
Anyway, the recipe is as follows and I am going to do this, come hell or high water. My ambition is to try out the rose petal ice cream – sounds heavenly to me!
ROSE PETAL SYRUP – courtesy MaryJo Koch – The Artist The Cook and the Gardener
6 oz fresh, fragrant rose petals (pink or red), 12 petals reserved
7 cups sugar
juice of one lemon, including seeds and pulp
- pick the rose petals from unsprayed roses in the morning when they are most fragrant. Grasp the tips of the rose and with scissors cut through the petals near the center, removing only the colored part of the petals, not the white tip at the base of the flower. Place the petals in a glass bowl and toss with 1 3/4 cups of sugar. Coat well, squeezing the petals to bruise slightly. Cover with plastic wrap and let stand in a cool place overnight.
- The next day, in a large saucepan, combine 3 1/2 cups water and the remaining 5 1/4 cups sugar. Bring to a boil, stirring, until the sugar dissolves. Add the lemon juice and the macerated rose petals with their sugary liquid to the pan and return to a boil.
- Reduce to a high simmer and cook for 30 minutes, until a candy thermometer reads 212F. Remove from the heat and let cool to room temperature. Strain, removing the rose petals and lemon seeds. Pour into sterilized bottles. Add 3 of the reserved fresh rose petals for decoration to each bottle. Store in refrigerator.
Tuesday, 7:59 am
Ok, so I asked the author about the wet rose petals and she said it is better not to use wet ones. This morning is the perfect morning outside, isn’t it? So, about an hour ago, out I went to harvest – trying to get a yield of 6 oz of petals from my Lillian Austins, my most fragrant roses. When I sniffed, no scent! What? Are these stimulated by warmth and not cool????
flower party!
Wednesday, June 5, 6:56 am:
Well, as you can see, I did indeed harvest all of my Lillian Austin roses – my most fragrant variety. 
This occurred yesterday in the late morning as indeed, the fragrance did come up as the flowers warmed. I macerated the roses petals overnight and they just finished simmering on the stove.
Anyone like to guess what my favorite color is?
Canning jars are in the dishwasher sterilizing and I have to pick one more rose for petals to add to the finalized jars as I forgot to reserve the 12 petals yesterday.
BTW, here is the recipe from her book for the ice cream. I plan on trying this asap!
ROSE PETAL ICE CREAM – courtesy Maryjo Koch
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
1 cup whole milk
2/3 cup superfine sugar
1/4 cup rose petal syrup, more for drizzling
1/2 vanilla bean, split lengthwise
1/4 cup unsprayed rose petals for garnish
- in a medium saucepan, combine the cream, milk, and sugar. Cook over medium heat, stirring until sugar is dissolved, and then continue to cook for about 3-4 minutes until tiny bubbles form around the edge of the pan; do NOT bring to a boil. Remove from heat. Stir in the rose syrup and the vanilla bean, scraping the vanilla bean’s seeds into the mixture. cover with plastic wrap and let stand for 30 minutes. Refrigerate for at least 2 1/2 hours, or until thoroughly chilled.
- Remove the vanilla pod and transfer the mixture to an ice cream maker. Freeze according to the manufacturer’s instructions.
- To serve, place a scoop of the ice cream in each bowl, drizzle with 1/2 teaspoon of rose syrup, and top with a few fresh rose petals.
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The Final Product – yield 4 cups
This was a very fun project – something different – will let you know about the ice cream and other uses!