Vegan candied lilacs ✨

I was so enchanted by the idea of candied flowers but anytime that I came across a recipe it involved using egg whites. So I decided to do a little experimenting and came up with a very simple and easy vegan alternative (like seriously, it’s SO easy)

I’ve gotten a lot of requests for this and am so excited that the lilacs began blooming recently in Ontario and that I can finally make this post for you sweet hearts! My lovely sister let me borrow a couple from her garden and although I had a full weekend planned, I carved out some time to crystallize the lilacs between other priorities and made sure to photograph everything too, then I took a much needed nap 🙈

I’ve made these for three or so years in a row now, and was hoping to try another method this year as well but I just didn’t have the energy or strength on this day (so there will be a part two this summer using a different edible flower)! This method leaves the flowers looking as if little crystals have formed all over them, I think they’re just so pretty and magical!

So here we go — I. First things first, you’re going to need some lilacs (or any edible flower of your choice) II. Once you’ve acquired them, they’ll need to be washed and prepped by separating each individual flower from the cluster III. After that just lay the lilac flowers on a towel to absorb any extra water but don’t let them dry completely, you’ll need them to be fairly damp still to do this IV. The more water left on your flowers the more heavily coated they will be, but too much water causes clumping V. I ground cane sugar using a mortar and pestle, which isn’t necessary, however a finer granulation will produce a more delicate looking end result

VI. You can work with a plate or a bowl to coat the lilacs in the sugar; this can be done by either pressing the flower into the dish and covering it with sugar, or by dropping a few into the dish and mixing them around. Afterwards just let them dry! VII. They can be enjoyed immediately (which I’d personally recommend as I love the freshness of the flower) but they can still be consumed after the flower has dried, and if stored properly can last quite a while!

Thank you for reading along and I hope that you enjoyed my vegan and spoonie friendly method for candying lilacs!

This can be done with any edible flower such as violets or day lilies or even the petals from a rose or sunflower <3

If you followed my simple little "recipe" I'd love to hear all about it!! Did you find it easy? And which flower did you use? Please comment below or tag me in your posts on instgram or tumblr!

Wishing you all plenty of joy and health,

I hope that you make the best of this week!