It happened several years ago, over an unimpressive meal. My best friend, having finished her dinner, picked up a piece of cantaloupe that looked hard enough to cut glass. It was, if memory serves me correctly, nestled among some kale at the side of her plate. Then, she looked over and asked, “Aren’t you going to eat yours?”

Without thinking, I uttered a simple phrase that has become the punch line of many a food-snob joke between the two of us: “I don’t eat garnish.”

Frankly, I hadn’t found anything plateside that was interesting enough to eat, save for the occasional sprig of parsley after a particularly garlicky meal. Then came the frittata at a Down East bed and breakfast, all dressed up with a few marigolds and a nasturtium.

They looked good enough to eat. So I did. And I liked it.

Since then, I’ve tried salads with rose petals, lavender lemonade and mango shakes with rosewater. A few years ago, mesclun mix with peppery nasturtiums and calendula blossoms started showing up at local farmers markets, much to my delight. There’s nothing like a few flower petals in a salad to wow your dinner guests, and they taste as good as they look.

Using blossoms as a garnish is a good way to ease into edible flowers, but they can hold their own as an ingredient in salads, desserts, beverages and entrees. The bright, puffy petals of nasturtium add flashes of red, orange and yellow to a bunch of baby greens, but they also add flavor. Though their visual statement is more subtle, tiny winter savory flowers add a spicy, hot bite to salads. A handful of diminutive basil flowers can take the place of the herb’s leaves in a Caprese salad of tomato and fresh mozzarella.

In my experience, rose petals taste better in sweeter dishes than in a salad, where their delicate, somewhat bitter flavor can be overpowered by even the lightest vinaigrette. And when miniature roses are served whole, their dry, almost velvety texture feels funny on your tongue. Cucumber-flavored borage blossoms are sometimes served with their prickly, fuzz-covered stems and leaves, all of which are edible. But again, the texture takes some getting used to.

“The flavor’s OK, but the texture just throws me off,” said Judy Madson of Brooksville, president of the Maine Herb Society.

Madson used to own a bed and breakfast in Holden, where she had extensive gardens that provided her plenty of herbs and flowers to experiment with. The gardens at her new home aren’t quite as diverse, but cooking with edible flowers is still one of Madson’s interests.

“I use them a lot,” she said.

She’s known for her Rose Petal Jelly, which makes an elegant accompaniment to toast. But Madson prefers to use it as a filling between two layers of white cake. Then, she covers the cake with white frosting and sprinkles candied rose petals on the outside. She also makes syrups infused with rose petals and violets, which make a refreshing beverage when mixed with a bit of club soda or ginger ale.

When it comes to edible flowers, roses, nasturtiums and violets are the “big three,” but there are dozens that go overlooked. Some blossoms aren’t worth eating – they’re either bitter or flavorless. But many add a subtle flavor and an unexpected dash of color to everyday meals.

Madson’s friend Lydia Mussulman of Bangor, a master gardener who loves to cook, invited me to her home last week so I could tour her gardens and get a sense of the variety of edible flowers. As we walked along the paths through a small plot near her barn, she plucked off a spike of anise hyssop and told me to taste the flowers. As I bit down on the tiny blossoms, a sharp licorice flavor filled my mouth. A bright red melon sage petal had a delicate melon taste to it. A tiny winter savory bloom was packed with spicy heat, similar to horseradish, but a bit milder.

“There’s really lots of edible flowers,” Mussulman said.

The key is to pair them with complementary flavors. For guidance, Mussulman recommends Susan Belsinger’s 1991 book “Flowers in the Kitchen,” which has a guide of 50 edible flowers along with suggestions for their use. In her recipes, a scoop of pineapple sorbet is sprinkled with pineapple sage petals. Anise hyssop flowers add zing to almond butter cookies. And big nasturtium blossoms are stuffed with guacamole for a pretty, tasty appetizer.

Though it’s usually best to use open flowers, daylily and sunflower buds (which taste a bit like artichokes) are the exception. Karyl Bannister, who publishes the popular newsletter “Cook & Tell,” suggests sauteeing them in a bit of butter and serving them sliced on the bias. They taste “a little like asparagus.”

Daylilies also can be used once they’re open. Barbara Damrosch of Four Seasons Farm in Harborside said their petals add a sweet flavor to salads.

“That’s not one that people normally think of, but the petals are really delicious,” she said.

While many flowers taste delicious, it’s best to experiment to find out which ones you like. Smell them to get a sense of how they’ll taste. Nibble the corner of a petal. Consider any allergies you or your guests may have and plan accordingly. Though you’ll want to remove the reproductive parts, you can’t avoid pollen altogether.

If you don’t have a garden, raid a friend’s or go to the farmers market. It’s best to avoid flowers from the florist, as they’re usually covered with pesticides. You’ll want to wash the blossoms thoroughly, even if they’re organically grown, to remove any insects.

There are dozens of options to choose from (see sidebar), and whether they take center stage in a meal or add a bit of excitement on the side of your plate, it’s OK to eat the daisies. I won’t tell.

Rose Petal Jelly

Makes 3 pints

1 1/2 cups rose petals

1 1/2 cups white grape juice

3 1/2 cups sugar

1 package liquid fruit pectin

Judy Madson recommends using rugosa rose petals, which do not have a bitter white part where the petal joins the flower. Taste rose petals beforehand. If the white part of the petal is bitter, trim from petals. If not, use whole petals. Red and pink roses also have a better flavor than yellow or white varieties.

Add petals to grape juice in a saucepan. Bring to a rolling boil, stirring constantly. Cook 1 minute, stirring frequently. Add fruit pectin. Cook, stirring constantly, until mixture returns to a rolling boil. Boil 1 more minute, stirring frequently. Remove from heat and skim off any foam. Strain most of the petals.

Pour into hot sterilized jars, leaving 1/4 inch headspace. Cover and screw caps on tightly. Process for 5 minutes in a boiling water bath.

Recipe adapted from one written by Gwen Baker of Ohio State University.

Rose Petal Syrup

1 cup rose petals

1 cup water

11/2 cups sugar

3 cloves (optional)

Taste rose petals beforehand. If the white part of the petal is bitter, trim from petals. If not, use whole petals. Bring water and rose petals to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 5 minutes. Add sugar and cloves and simmer until sugar is dissolved. Strain petals and pour syrup into sterile bottles. Refrigerate.

Lilac Sorbet

Makes 4 servings

2 cups water

1/4 cup sugar

1/2 cup lilac flowers, coarsely chopped

In a heavy, nonreactive saucepan, bring water and sugar to a boil over medium-high heat. Add lilac flowers, reduce heat and simmer 8 minutes, stirring frequently. Remove from heat and let mixture cool to room temperature. Strain out flowers if desired. Pour liquid into an ice cream maker and freeze according to manufacturer’s directions. Serve topped with candied lilacs.

Recipe adapted from Herb Companion Magazine’s April/May 1998 issue.

Flori di Zucca Fritti (Fried Zucchini Flowers)

Makes 30 stuffed flowers; about 6 servings

Batter:

1 cup all purpose flour

1T. extra virgin olive oil

water as needed

Stuffing:

1/2 cup firm, coarse textured breadcrumbs (crusts trimmed) soaked in milk 10 minutes and squeezed dry

6 medium mushrooms, finely chopped

2 cloves fresh garlic

1 tablespoon fresh Italian flat leafed parsley, chopped

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

30 tightly closed zucchini flowers

Oil for frying

salt and pepper

Note: Usually the male flower, which can be identified by a thinner stem, is used for cooking. The zucchini flower must be picked and eaten while still firmly closed.

For the batter

In medium bowl toss the oil with the flour; add enough water until the thickness of pancake batter is obtained. Set aside.

For the stuffing

Place halved mushrooms, garlic cloves and parsley in food processor and buzz till chopped. (Or you may chop them by hand).

Add 1 tablespoon olive oil to heavy saute pan. Add mushroom-garlic-parsley mixture and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until mushrooms become lightly browned and fairly dry. Remove from heat and let cool.

Mix the bread with the mushroom mixture. Open flowers gently and stuff, pressing the flowers closed around the filling.

In heavy saucepan or frying pan, pour 2 inches of oil and bring to 350 degrees (just below the smoking point). Dip the flowers in the batter and fry until golden on all sides. Season with salt and pepper.

Drain on paper towels and serve at once.

Recipe courtesy of Cathi DiCocco

Edible flowers

Anise hyssop

Basil

Borage

Calendula

Chive

Chrysanthemum

Daisy

Day lily

Dill

Fennel

Grape hyacinth

Hollyhock

Honeysuckle

Hyacinth bean

Johnny-jump-up

Lavender

Lemon balm

Lilac

Marigold

Melon sage

Nasturtium

Oregano

Pansy

Pineapple sage

Pinks (dianthus)

Rose

Snapdragon

Squash blossom

Sugar snap pea

Tulip

Violet

Winter savory

Zucchini blossom