With Summer among us, our nurseries are full of life – from multi-coloured fields of edible flowers, to the sunset colours of our speciality tomatoes – everything is blooming. And whilst we’re lucky enough to be surrounded by the delightful aromas and vibrancy every day, we wanted to share it with you!
From our Inspired Edible Flowers to Taste of the Sea ranges – and many more, here are a few of our Summer selection that we want to make a song and dance about to inspire you this season.
Courgette flowers
A delight for the eyes, our Courgette flowers are both beautiful and memorable. Not too dissimilar to lily flowers in appearance, these vibrant beauties are bound to have an impact. And, they’re not just noticeable for their appearance, they have a clean, gently mustard to their petals, which goes fantastically with the sweet crunch of their base. Their blossoms also make them super versatile to cook with, so whether you want to stuff, wilt or deep fry them pop these sunshine stems on your plates this summer.
Mint – but not as you know it
Mint feels like it’s always been a staple Summer scent and flavour, but at Westlands we want to bring a new perspective, so alongside the classic Mojito Mint, we’ve also got some new variations such as Strawberry and Chocolate!
With a sweet strawberry aroma our Strawberry Mint gives the flavour of refreshing spearmint. On the other hand our Chocolate Mint gives you a cooling sweet peppermint flavour. Whether you’re putting these in your salads, dressing your desserts, or garnishing those Summer cocktails, try our selection of Mints and let us know how you get on.
Sunflower shoots
With longer Summer nights, BBQ’s and the occasional appearance of the sun, Summer is the time to break out your best salad recipes.
Over the years we’ve seen the introduction of slightly more unusual salad combinations, from Watermelon and Feta, to Peach and Chicken. And whilst we’d love to bring you a wild new recipe, we’re confident that we’ve got an ingredient that can help to elevate any salad – Sunflower shoots
We all know that Sunflowers are famous for their vibrant yellow flowers, but we want to introduce you to their shoots. These shoots create a moist, tender pop releasing a slight almond-like flavour an unexpected but delicious experience. Let them take centre stage in a salad with nothing more than fruity olive oil, a squeeze of lemon, flaky salt and shavings of Parmigiano-Reggiano.
Speciality tomatoes
“You say Tomato, we say tomato”. But one thing’s for sure -us Brits love them! From Cherry to ‘On the Vine’, we love the look and taste of these red jewels. And, at Westlands we want to take your tomato selection global.
With specialities tomatoes from all over Europe, we can bring you the likes of San Marzano from Italy, Orange Marmonde from France, and Green Tigers. With yellows, reds, oranges and greens, we grow these famous European flavours right here in our glasshouses in the UK.
Edible flowers
Edible flowers have slowly been making themselves a core contender of the garnish game, having been a top trend over the past few years. With more variations becoming popping up quite regularly these little taste sensations just keep getting better.
Whether garnishing with roses, pansies, or using staple violas, edible flowers are a delicate way to add beauty to a dish without overwhelming with flavour. From our edible mixed flowers, to single varieties, we have over 35 types of edible flowers to choose from. If you want to create the added ‘wow-factor’ to decorate your drinks and dishes, check out what we have to offer?
Oyster Leaf Flowers
The taste of the sea, but captured on dry land. These beautiful blue flowers with their elongated bells offer a light taste of oyster, as their name suggests. A treat for the eyes and the taste buds, these flowers are the perfect accompaniment to fish dishes. However, they also offer a unique twist on meat dishes and partner perfectly with wild mushrooms. So, wherever the summer takes your dishes, never forget the potential for Oyster Leaf Flowers.
The Westlands Way
Whilst the blog on our Summer picks has come to an end, we won’t stop there. For the past 80 years, we’ve been growing, picking, perfecting, and expanding our produce business to provide the best micro leaves, edible flowers, and speciality tomatoes that the UK has to offer. Chosen by chefs and used in restaurants nationwide (including Michelin Star venues), as expert growers we’re always working behind the scenes with Chefs and Mixologists to identify the next innovation for your dishes and drinks.
To stay up to date with our produce and hear about our new products and ranges, visit our website, or follow us on social media by searching for our handle @westlandsuk.
We hope we’ve inspired you to go and create something memorable with our produce. Get in touch with your distributor and ask them to stock it for you – and let us know what you create! Alternatively you can also call us on 0330 0580 857.