The Lazy Forager: #1 – Broad Bean Flowers

 

„That’s one very happy bumblebee“, I thought the other day, as I watched a rotund bee-shaped body whizz around my broad bean plants, diving in and out of its gorgeous flowers with astonishing non-bumbly precision. I became curious about the flowers. I went and had a closer look. I knelt down and smelt them. This is the second or third year I’m growing overwintered broad bean plants (or field beans) on my allotment for green manure, yet for the first time ever it occurred to me to actually stop and smell the flowers. I couldn’t believe what I’d been missing – so fragrant! A total delight! 

A bit of research revealed that broad bean flowers were rated by many as being quite high up on the edible-flowers-deliciousness-scale. So last night, when I had a bowl of sorry-looking leftover salad leaves to liven up, I went and extracted a handful of flowers… careful not to disturb any bumbles, obviously. 

And what can I say? They were an absolutely delicious addition to my salad. In fact, they pretty much completely upstaged the leaves. I mean... just look at them!