Edible flower + styling workshop Recap

rhubarb-rose-mint-jam | le jus d

“We can only be said to be alive in those moments when our hearts are conscious of our treasures.” ― this quote by Thornton Wilder perfectly sums up how I felt about this weekend. Meg of Bread + Barrow and I co-hosted our first little event / workshop at Olives & Grace in the South End, which is one of my favorite neighborhoods in Boston. I hesitate to call it a workshop because it was really a gathering to talk about edible flowers and how to use them in food photography and styling. I knew from our very first in-person chat that we were of the same mold and therefore would work in perfect harmony. We sat in a coffee shop, talking about wild idealistic dreams of leading foraging adventures in Cape Cod, teaching photography by the shores of Big Sur, or even just hosting a beautiful gathering at her house in the fields. I am a dreamer, an in dreaming I can find what’s important to me or makes me happy, and translate that into a real-life action plan. Rhubarb Rose Mint Jam | le jus d

What a great group of people. We couldn’t have asked for a better group. My favorite part of this event was just meeting people in the area. They weren’t all food bloggers either – we had beauty bloggers, other photographers, and just anyone who wanted to learn more about how to use flowers in food. We kept it casual, fun, and a way to throw our arms up into the sky and fully embrace spring, which has finally hit Boston. And, since it was such a lovely day screaming of bright sunlight and summer, we shot outside!!! You’ll notice that the light is very different from what I normally shoot with, and it was SUCH a blast. And a big thanks to Chloe of Scoopsies for providing three mouthwatering flavors of ice cream: white chocolate lavender, strawberry hibiscus, and cardamom rose.

We had so much fun and such overwhelming positive responses and requests, that -YES – Meg and I are going to be hosting another event in a month! I’ll provide full details in the next post 🙂

edible flower | shoot + stye | le jus dedible flower | shoot + stye | le jus d

Anyway, read on for more photos, the recipe for a rhubarb rose mint jam. The beautiful scones are up on Meg’s blog!

edible flower | shoot + stye | le jus d

We had fresh apple blossoms, roses, and violets and dried hibiscus, rose, and lavender.

edible flower | shoot + stye | le jus d

edible flower | shoot + stye | le jus d… and lavender mimosas. Can’t say no to those.

edible flower | shoot + stye | le jus d

I have to admit, shooting ice cream in direct sunlight was a struggle. Shooting ice cream at home is a struggle too – it’s one of those universal food blogger problems, no? Melting icecream and sticky fingers 🙂

edible flower | shoot + stye | le jus dedible flower | shoot + stye | le jus d

edible flower | shoot + stye | le jus dedible flower | shoot + stye | le jus dedible flower | shoot + stye | le jus dedible flower | shoot + stye | le jus dedible flower | shoot + stye | le jus d

I would apologize for the excessive amount of photos, but I’m too excited to share these with you to care :). Thank you to everyone who attended. It couldn’t have been done without you, and I’m so happy to meet each and every one of you. A big shout out to Sofi at Olives and Grace for the beautiful table, patio space, and delicious mimosas. Huge hugs to Chloe for the delicious ice cream (PS – she delivers, so go check it out! New flavors all the time!). And of course, my partner in crime, Meg – you are wonderful, and I feel quite privileged to be able to work with you!

edible flower | shoot + stye | le jus d

edible flower | shoot + stye | le jus d


Alright, let’s talk JAM. It’s quite simple. I based this recipe off of Leite’s Culinaria’s simple rhubarb jam recipe and this one from allrecipes. Leite’s Culinaria has some GREAT tips on how to make it, process it, and store it. I would read up on that process before you start jamming!

rhubarb-rose-mint-jam | le jus drhubarb-rose-mint-jam | le jus dRecipe: Rhubarb Rose Mint Jam

Ingredients
2.5 lbs fresh rhubarb, chopped
2 cups brown sugar
1 lemon, halved and juiced. Seeds in a tea strainer.
3/4 cup water
3 fresh mint sprigs
2 tsp rosewater

1| To prepare: place a plate in the freezer.
2| In a saucepan, combine rhubarb, sugar, lemon juice, seeds, water and let sit for 1 hour.
3| Bring to a boil. Add in rosewater. Cook over medium-high heat for about 15 minutes, and skim the foam off the surface.
4| Lower heat to medium. Simmer, stirring to prevent burning, for 15 minutes.
5| Remove plate from freezer and place a spoonful of jam in the plate from freezer. If it holds shape, then it is ready. Otherwise, continue cooking for another 5 minutes, checking again.
6| Remove seeds and lemon halves. Skim off remaining foam. Stir in mint sprigs and let infuse for another 5 minutes, until you feel mint flavor has infused completely. When the jam cools, the flavor is less intense, so keep that in mind. Remove sprigs.
7| Ladle into mason jars and tap on counter to remove air bubbles. Secure lids and rings. Proceed with processing/sealing via link above.

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  • Wowwowwow Betty, these photos are all so gorgeous!!! I wish I could have attended the workshop, it sounds like so much fun and a huge success!!! Congrats!ReplyCancel

  • Caroline @ Pass the Cocoa

    Betty, you forgot to mention on Saturday you made the fabulous jam you served with the scones (: It was such a pleasure to meet you at the workshop, and see you in action shooting photos! (The reaching arms photos turned out really well, haha)ReplyCancel

  • Ahh your pictures in the direct sun are amazing! they are sunny but subdued and turned out so pretty. No idea if that was editing magic or camera settings but I adore it. Ooh and that speckled bowl too 🙂ReplyCancel

  • wooowww those pictures are amazing! I LOVE the decorated ice cream!! It’s like a scoop fell into a garden and you plucked it out and put it in a cone. LOVE!!! (Wish I could have been there to eat it myself!)ReplyCancel

  • conniechoi

    Thank you (and Meg) again so much for hosting that wonderful workshop. I had such a fun time!! Thanks to your solid advice, I shot in RAW last weekend, and it made such a huge difference!!! Your photos came out *so* nice, and you made shooting in direct sunlight look so easy (: You are the best!ReplyCancel

  • So much fun guys and such happy thoughts! This sounds like an amazing workshop. Congratulations, Betty!!!ReplyCancel

  • Ahhhhh you are so inspiring girl! It’s always a trip (a good trip) to see people take their dreams into reality. Great job and keep it up! Oh and…please do this in LA!!!! Haha. I’m loving this change of outdoor photos from you, Betty. The ones with the full setup are my favorite.ReplyCancel

  • Jealous I wasn’t at that workshop! Also, I know it’s odd but I never really got to experience rhubarb until this spring. I love it and this jam sounds phenomenal!!ReplyCancel

  • Betty, this jam sounds increeeeedible! We have just finally started getting rhubarb in SOME grocery stores here in eastern Canada, and jam feels like a great way to preserve the summer vibes into winter.
    Also – you did a great job shooting in natural light! Not an easy transition 🙂ReplyCancel

  • I am so insanely jealous that I couldn’t fly out to Boston to come to your workshop! Oh how I would have loved to be a fly on the wall – but will you PLEASE host a photography on the shores of Big Sur?? 🙂 This rhubarb rose mint jam is everything. EVERYTHING. I want to put it on everything ever from now on. Your photos inspire me – do I sound like a broken record??ReplyCancel

  • […] my current obsession is all things rhubarb and all things flavored by nature. So of course this Rhubarb Rose Mint Jam by my fellow Boston blogger Betty over at Le Jus D’Orange makes the cut. All of her recipes […]ReplyCancel

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