The tricolor violet is a healthy and tasty plant. Caloric content and chemical composition of edible flowers. Useful properties and possible harm when used. What dishes are prepared from them, interesting facts about the plant. Dentists advise using the plant to treat periodontal disease and stomatitis.
External application of flower infusion accelerates recovery in case of skin diseases of an infectious nature, eliminates purulent-inflammatory processes in case of furunculosis and acne.
Traditional healers used decoctions of Ivan da Marya to treat epilepsy, relieve alcohol syndrome, and eliminate nervous tics.
Contraindications and harm of pansies
You should not introduce the tricolor violet into the child's diet until he is 3 years old. The digestive tract of babies is very gentle, metabolic processes are accelerated. The choleretic properties of the plant can provoke diarrhea.
The harm to pansies can be caused by:
- In pregnant women, the tonic effect can provoke uterine contraction and cause premature birth;
- With hepatitis, glomerulonephritis, renal and hepatic failure;
- With a tendency to diarrhea.
The main content of alkaloids is in the root of the plant, but a small amount is found in the leaves and stems. Intoxication can provoke serious allergic reactions: itching, redness, swelling, bronchospasm and anaphylactic shock. Therefore, a new product should be introduced into the menu with care, avoiding overeating. Individual intolerance to Ivan da Maryu is quite common.
In this case, not only do they refuse the flower as a culinary ingredient, but also do not buy cosmetics and detergents, if the composition contains pansies ether or oil.
How to eat pansies
Flowers are harvested in May and June, at the time of flowering. Cut off just above the root, about a third of the stem, or cut off the flower heads without sepals. But this does not mean that pansies are eaten like cabbage or parsley, plucked from a flower bed or from a forest clearing.
The plant should be rinsed well to remove dirt and dust, and soaked to help reduce the concentration of alkaloids.
Dark flowers are added to vinegar, light ones - to desserts, yoghurts, salads. Dried flower heads are used to prepare tonic drinks, and whole flowers are glazed and decorated with desserts.
Pansy Recipes
Flowers are collected only in ecologically clean areas, avoiding roads. You should not buy bouquets from gardeners for food purposes. The flower beds were probably treated with herbicides, and you can get poisoned. When choosing a food grade from horticultural crops, preference should be given to light flower heads. The dark pigment stains and can make the dish look unsightly. In addition, the taste of dark flowers is sharper.
Pansy Recipes:
- Sugar-coated pansies … To prepare this dish, flowers can be picked along with the stems and leaves, or only the heads can be harvested. Fresh parts of plants (or plants as a whole) are poured with cold water and allowed to stand for 15-30 minutes, slightly submerged. This is necessary to completely remove dust and sand. First, the pansies are thrown back in a colander, allowing the water to drain, and then spread on paper towels to dry. While the moisture evaporates, beat the chicken proteins with sugar in the proportion - 1 protein per 1/3 cup. Cover the trays with tracing paper or parchment, preheat the oven to 50-60 ° C. Each flower or flower head is dipped in whipped egg white and rolled in powdered sugar, carefully so that the plant does not lose its shape, laid on a leaf. Dry in the oven for 1, 5 hours, opening the door. Later, confectionery products are decorated with glazed flowers.
- Nougat with violets … The seeds of the pine, the fruit of the Italian pine, are peeled. You need 25-40 g of seeds. Fried in a pan until light beige, "nutty" color. While the seeds are cooling, grind the same amount of pistachios. 100 g of glazed corollas of violets are divided into 3 parts, 2 are ground into powder. Cover the mold with rice paper and boil the syrup from a glass of granulated glucose and six tablespoons of water. The fire must be very small, otherwise it will burn. When the syrup is boiled down, it becomes thick and stringy, it is removed from the heat and placed in a container with cold water. Beat the protein into a cool foam, pouring in warm syrup drop by drop. You need to get a creamy texture. The cream is mixed with all kinds of nuts and crushed violets. To enhance the aroma, add 1 drop of violet flavoring or syrup boiled in a water bath to the sweet mass. The form is put into the refrigerator. When the nougat hardens, it is cut into pieces, each decorating with a head of violets.
- Violet cake … Butter, half a pack, grind with a quarter cup of granulated sugar. Beat 2 eggs with the same amount of sugar. Better yolks and whites separately. 4 tablespoons of flour are mixed with a third glass of milk, sweet butter and eggs are driven into the dough - both parts in turn, add a handful of ground almonds. The dough should be smooth and thick. The mold is greased with sunflower oil, the dough is put into it. The oven is heated to 200-220 ° C. Bake for 15-20 minutes, checking the dryness of the biscuit with a toothpick. When the biscuit has cooled, it is taken out of the mold and cut into 2 cakes. The lower one is left in the refrigerator, in a dish with violet syrup, so that it is thoroughly soaked (the recipe is indicated below). While the cake is soaked, the cream is prepared. Soak 20 g of gelatin in water if it is in granules, or 5 sheets if it is pressed. Beat 3 yolks and 90 g of sugar. When the mass brightens, a glass of warm milk is poured in a thin stream. The resulting mass is placed in a water bath and whisked for a long time until a thick "creamy" consistency is obtained, like condensed milk. At this stage, 6 tablespoons of violet syrup are poured in and mixed thoroughly. Collect the cake, coat the biscuit layers with cream. A little cream is left to decorate the top cake. For decoration, a rim of whipped cream is made along the edge of the pie, and almonds and glazed violets are spread in the middle.
- Explosion of pleasure salad … Cooking starts with the sauce. Put 2 yolks and 15 ml of olive oil in a blender bowl, beat. Add 40 g of Dijon mustard, 2 tablespoons of raspberry vinegar and 100 g of fresh raspberries. Turn on the fast mode for 3-4 minutes. In a salad bowl, spread 100 g of romaine lettuce leaves torn by hand. Separately mix 30 g of grated roquefort, 3 chopped fig berries, 20 shredded pansy flowers and 7 rose petals, cut into strips. Spread the mixture on a salad, pour over the sauce.
Pansies can be added to a spring salad with radishes, cucumbers, nettles, and dandelions. Greens are combined with ham, boiled eggs and onions. But pickled cucumber is not reported in such salads - it "eats" the characteristic taste.
Pansy Drink Recipes
If you want to give an original taste to soft drinks or dishes, use these recipes with pansies:
- Syrup … The richer it is, the more suitable it is for more dishes. After diluting, soak biscuits, add concentrated to ice cream, smear on bread, like honey. All green parts of the flower are removed and the petals are tamped tightly together with the pistil and stamens in a glass container. The petals are poured with warm water and covered with sugar, proportions 1: 2: 2, allowed to stand until evening. If there is not enough time, then the sugar is melted using a water bath, stirring the contents of the jar. Steam treatment is carried out within half an hour, no less. Then the syrup is decanted, carefully squeezing out the petals. Store like a regular jam.
- French syrup … Used in various cocktail recipes with pansies. A handful of inflorescences are covered with a glass of sugar and rubbed with a wooden spoon or pestle so as to obtain juice. The sugar gruel is covered with gauze and left to stand overnight at room temperature. In the morning, boil like a regular jam, until it thickens. Lemon juice or vanilla can be added for flavor. Interestingly, depending on the amount of lemon juice, the drink changes color. Just a little - it will remain violet, a little more - it will turn blue, and if you increase the amount of the additive, it will turn pink.
- Violet tea … Has a tonic effect and warms in the cold season. To brew a drink, half a tablespoon of dried flowers is mixed with black or green tea, poured over with boiling water and sweetened with honey. You can add honey to improve the taste.
To cool mineral water or fruit juices on a hot summer day, ice is frozen in molds and one flower head is put in each of them. The drink becomes not only tastier, but also healthier.
Interesting facts about pansies
A legend tells about the origin of pansies: Zeus turned them into people who spied on the goddess of carnal love and beauty, Venus.
If you spread the flower head upside down on a piece of paper, you can see that the outlines resemble a man. That is why the French flower connoisseurs have assigned the plant the symbol "meditation". That is, if a girl receives a bunch of pansies, the gentleman wants to tell her: "I think about you all the time."
In Russia, it was believed that such a gift was dangerous, and it was not worth growing flowers in the garden. Traditionally, it was believed that coffins were decorated with wreaths and bouquets.
In England, a popular belief is associated with pansies: if you pick a bouquet, it will rain. Pupils of the closed boarding houses of Old England passed messages to each other with dried flowers. To receive such a herbarium from a young man meant a declaration of love for a girl.
Poles used the juice of pansies to make a love potion. Allegedly, it is worth sprinkling the eyelids of the sleeping person, and upon awakening he will fall in love with the one he sees first.
Currently, it is already clear that pansies do not have magical properties, but they still have protective ones. Prevents the development of scab on flowers growing nearby. Therefore, creating an ensemble in a flower bed, it is best to plant violets between the rest of the plants.
The benefits of violet pansies for women are invaluable. Plant masks will help to cope with increased pigmentation, stop age-related changes and restore shine and beauty to the skin. So, if possible, you should definitely plant flowers in your own garden.
Watch a video about pansies:
