With Father’s day fast approaching, why not treat that special man in your life with a beautiful summer picnic. Being inspired from the gardens around us, source some edible flowers that can be used to decorate cakes or added to lovely summer recipes for an extra special twist on this very wonderful day.

What you need…

  • 110g of softened butter
  • 110g caster sugar
  • 110g plain flour
  • 2tsp of baking powder
  • 2 medium eggs
  • 1tsp vanilla extract
  • a handful of ‘tropaeolum majus’ edible flowers
  • icing sugar
  • water to mix

what to do…

  1. preheat the oven to 180c
  2. put the butter and sugar into the bowl and beat
  3. sift the flour and baking powder into a bowl
  4. beat the eggs, vanilla extract and add to the original mixture and combine.
  5. transfer the mixture into the cupcake cases and bake for 15 minutes until golden and firm
  6. transfer the cooked cupcakes onto a cooling rack
  7. meanwhile start making the icing, adding small amounts of water to make the right consistency
  8. spread the icing over the cooled cupcakes and place a flower on each one
  9. eat and enjoy!!!

into a little dream adventure…

  • research all the beautiful edible flowers that can be used in cooking, you may well be surprised how many you already have growing in your garden that make such a pretty addition to many foods
  • alternatively take your child to the garden centre, explore the herbs and edible flowers available there, looking at the colours, textures, smells
  • like with any baking activity, the journey of the process is what the children love, as well as the end result!!! it is really important for us, as the adult to give the child time to explore the textures of the ingredients, what happens when something is added to something, how the colours change, what it feels like…extending the activity with open ended questions to encourage the curiosity in a young child’s mind