When you have a large crop of gaillardia from the garden or farmstand, you don't have time to casually include it in complicated recipes or to frantically figure out how to use it up before it goes bad without getting sick of it. You want to make the most of your harvest and to actually enjoy it.
Here at Plant to Plate, we like to keep things simple! Here are some of my favorite ways to use or preserve gaillardia, also known as blanket flower:
- Make seed flour. Dry and grind the seeds to make them into a flour. This seed flower can then be combined with other flours and used in a variety of baked goods.
- Add the petals and leaves to soups and broths.
- Add the petals and leaves to egg dishes like omelets and quiches.
- Use the petals as Decor in an Interesting Salad. (Wondering why I capitalized those letters? Read more about Interesting Salads here!)
- Add the petals to other salads.
- Make a tea with the leaves. Gaillardia leaf tea is best as an infusion.
- Make a tincture with the leaves. The suggested herb:solvent ratio for a gaillardia tincture is 1:5 in 40% alcohol.
- Dry the leaves and seeds for later use. See our How to Dry Your Herbs articles here for more information.
Further Reading
Growing gaillardia? Check out these quick facts like its best growing conditions, companion plants, and expected yields.
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