October 28, 2014

My roses are waning. I picked three today for a bouquet. From my kitchen window I can see the ‘Prospero" rose pictured above. Is it my favorite? Maybe. The fragrance is intense and the color changes from deep red to magenta as the bloom ages.

But back to drying roses in a hot car. You may have read my earlier post Drying Chili Peppers In My Car In A Heat Wave. Actually, drying roses and most herbs are much easier because the there’s less to dehydrate.

Here is my 'Prospero’ rose at 9 AM before disassembly for drying. It was an 80-something day.

By 11:15 some of the smallest petals were dried and the larger ones were shrinking.

I declared them finished two hours later when they were papery and a deeper red and so fragrant. 

When I made a fresh batch of granola, I scattered them around–more for effect than flavor. Wouldn’t they be nice on vanilla yogurt or a simple pudding? 

You also might like my earlier post Rose Petal Granola where a hefty pile of dried rose petals are paired with dried cranberries for a luscious treat.