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Candied violets are a delicacy that originated in Vienna from Empress Sissi's time.
Empress Elisabeth's favorite treat: natural, handpicked violet blossom leaves delicately candied with the finest sugar.
K. u. K. Court Confectioner Ch. Demel's Sons Gmbh
The recipe that I would like to introduce today is one of the simplest ways to candy violets.
The ready candied violets make an excellent addition to sparkling wine, or a fancy cocktail, giving it a beautiful color and a sweet violet flavor.
The month of March is the flowering time of violets. If you have a garden, you should be on the lookout for violets this month and harvest them as soon as they are in full bloom.
Now you can make yourself delicious candied violets and, for example, violet syrup and have pleasure with it all year round!
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🥘 Ingredients
- Superfine Sugar
- Fresh Violets
- Water
See the recipe card for quantities.
🍽 Equipment
- Small cooking pot
- Fork
- Wooden spoon
- Cake rack or baking paper
🔪 Instructions
The preparation of candied violets begins with collecting and harvesting violets in your garden. Since violets do not bloom forever, I recommend harvesting a large portion at once and making candied violets or violet syrup from it in one fell swoop.
Since I was unfortunately quite late this year, the harvest was somewhat meager. But better a handful than none at all!
Back in the kitchen, it's time to start candying.
Dissolve the sugar in boiling water. Now wash the violet blossoms with water and remove the stem.
Then place the violets into the sugar solution.
Note that the flowers are entirely immersed in the sugar solution, and leave them for a day.
The next day, lift the flowers out of the solution with a fork.
Let them drain a little and place them on a close-meshed cake rack or on baking paper to dry for another 24 hours. Since I had a close-meshed rack on hand, I used that one. Don't forget to place a paper towel underneath to soak up any excess sugar solution.
Once the sugar is firm, you can store them in a well-sealed container.
Done! Such a quick and easy way to make this treat!
🙋🏻 FAQ
Where to buy candied Violets
I found several places where you can buy those wonderful candied violets:
Snag your wonderful candied violets @ Etsy! TheGroovyGroveGarden is selling them too!
At selfridges.com you can buy Candied Violets from Mill & Mortar (UK).
Candied Violets Vienna (Demel candied violets)
Demel is the place to buy your violets if you are after real Austrian candied violets. The K and K Court Confectioner, in Vienna, still produces these delicious candied violets. Unfortunately, the transportation costs from Austria are quite high overseas. But maybe you'll take a vacation in beautiful Vienna, my hometown? Then you should not miss a visit at Demel!
K. U. K. COURT CONFECTIONER
CH. DEMEL'S SONS GMBH
Address: Kohlmarkt 14, 1010 Vienna
Phone: +43 (1) 535 17 17 - 0
E-mail: wien@demel.com
Opening hours: daily 10.00 a.m. - 07.00 p.m.
Kaiserschmarrn: daily 11.00 a.m. - 07:00 p.m.
Candied Violets Amazon?
Since Amazon sells nearly everything, you can buy candied violets there as well.
What do Candied Violets Taste like?
Candied violets taste sweet and give a wonderful violet scent to sparkling wine, champagne, cocktails, and ordinary water.
🌡️ Storage
The candied violets last up to 6 months in an airtight container.
📖 Recipe
How to make Candied Violets?
Equipment
- 1 Small cooking pot
- Fork
- Wooden spoon
- Cake rack or baking paper
Ingredients
- ½ cup Water
- 1.5 cups Superfine sugar
- 50 Violets
Instructions
- Dissolve the sugar in boiling water.½ cup Water, 1.5 cups Superfine sugar
- Place the violets into the sugar solution. Note that the flowers are entirely immersed in the sugar solution!50 Violets
- Leave them in the sugar solution for 24 hours.
- Lift the flowers out of the solution with a fork.
- Let them drain a little and place them on a close-meshed cake rack or on baking paper to dry for another 24 hours.
- Once the sugar is firm, you can store them in a well-sealed container.
Please note that all my recipes are developed and tested in metric grams. I recommend using digital scales for more accurate results. I provided a conversion to US customary in the recipe, but please note that I haven't tested it using this method.
Nutrition values are estimates only, using online calculators. Please verify using your own data.
⛑️ Food Safety
- Cook to a minimum temperature of 165 °F (74 °C)
- Do not use the same utensils on cooked food, that previously touched raw meat
- Wash hands after touching raw meat
- Don't leave food sitting out at room temperature for extended periods
- Never leave cooking food unattended
- Use oils with high smoking point to avoid harmful compounds
- Always have good ventilation when using a gas stove
Gloria
Super cute idea. I have never tried this before. I will give it a try this summer.
Sara
What a fun and unique recipe! It was so fun to talk about during dinner with family.
Anna
These came out beautifully! Thanks so much for this easy method and instructions, they made the prettiest decorations for my friend's birthday cake!
Melinda
Oh my goodness what a fun recipe! I’ve always wondered how to make pretty, edible flowers even prettier. Thank you for sharing!!
Susan Pearlman
Do you cool the sugar syrup first before adding the violets?
Nora
Hi Susan! No, the sugar does not need to be cooled before adding the violets.