Rose petals and Persian cooking

One more thing to add - sorry! I recently had a sublime dessert in Montréal made by Patrice Demers. he used a rose petal powder from a local Canadian company called d'Origina. A little goes a long way, and I would say completely worth a purchase! http://www.dorigina.com/en/spices/products Happy Persian Baking & Cooking!

Hi Jen! I have been baking with rose petals and rose water for years, and I would say it is always best to use dried roses or dried rose petals, which are more easily sourced than fresh. Even if you find fresh roses, that are unsprayed, it;'s rare to find any roses these days with their scent intact enough to infuse anything. If you know someone who has them - make sure they are Tea Roses - light pink - they are the only ones with strong enough scents for culinary purposes.

Always make sure any dried flowers you are buying are marked EDIBLE or FOR CULINARY purposes. Same with rose oil or rose water, as many of these are lovely but not meant to be ingested.

I like to buy rose extract from Massey's, which I get at Kalustyan's or specialty cake shops. The woman here who is selling whole roses sounds lovely for garnishing, but when you're spending $50 per pound, of anything, you mostly just want what you need, which is not necessarily stem and leaf etc.

Whatever route you choose - rose water/extract/flowers/petals, remember to taste as you go, EVERY time you make a recipe. And - store these delicate spices in a cool dark place. Their fragrances disappear as quickly as a Persian whisper...

Hi Jen and everyone, Please visit my etsy shop where I offer Persian rose petals that are fragrant, hand-picked and untreated. www.etsy.com/shop/zozobaking
Thank you :)

Thanks everyone!

If you live near an area where there are ethnic/middle eastern markets, they might sell dried rose petals for consumption.

You want to be absolutely certain they were unsprayed. Bouquet flowers grown for looks tend to be full of pesticides.

You need rose petals that are untreated. And...depending on where you live, it may not be so easy to find. Some florists will have untreated roses, and will often sell loose petals for less money. I would call first and ask, though. I learned the hard way after running all over creation looking for non-toxic flowers for wedding cakes years back.