Tips on Creative Ways to Use Edible Flowers for Cakes (2024)

I’m a self confessed “floraholic” who also enjoys baking, and I love using the flowers in my garden to decorate my cakes. On this page I’m going to share with you some creative tips that I have learnt using edible flowers for cakes. Also I’ll suggest the best flowers to use on your cakes and the techniques you can use to apply them.

Flowers and cakes are 2 things that create joy and happiness in many people – including me! Put them together and you really have a match made in floral cake heaven! See my post on Edible Flower Cupcakes – Floral Delights You’ll Remember for a recipe of how you can do this in your own kitchen.

The beauty of edible flowers lies not just in their aesthetics but also in how they can complement your cake’s flavor profile. Here are some ideas I’ve put together to get you started.

• Citrus cakes: Pansies’ mild sweetness pairs beautifully with citrusy flavors. Begonias also have a soft lemony flavor and are a delicate and pretty bloom.
• Vanilla cakes: Violets’ subtle floral taste goes perfectly with frosting on a vanilla cake. Lilacs florets also pairs well with vanilla.
• Chocolate cakes:Vibrant red miniature roses add a splash of color, while their delicate flavor complements the richness of chocolate. You can also place small florets of red pentas flowers also known as the Egyptian Star flower. Their star like shape creating a pretty starlike pattern against the dark chocolate frosting.
• Carrot cakes: Nasturtiums, Marigold or Calendula petals compliment the golden color of carrot cake and add a touch of earthy and slightly spicy sweetness.

Many people have asked me where to buy edible flowers for cakes, so I have created this comprehensive guide to organic growers in Australia.

I am continuing to grow an international list which I hope I will be able to share with you in the coming months.

Any flower that you know is edible and has been organically grown will provide a stunning flower decoration for your cake and can make it look like a million dollars!

I decorate plain supermarket cakes that I have bought with edible flowers! This makes themlook much more appealing and interesting than just a “supermarket cake”!

Below is a list of my best edible flowers for cakes, but you can use any flowers that you know are edible and have been grown organically.

• Alyssum – fresh, pressed
• Begonias – fresh, crystallized, freeze dried
• Borage – fresh, pressed, crystallized
• Butterfly Pea Flower – fresh, pressed
• Cornflower – fresh, dried, freeze-dried
• Cosmos – fresh, pressed
• Crucifix orchids – fresh, pressed
• Larger orchids can be used as a focal point if desired
• Dianthus – fresh, dried, pressed
• Forget me nots – fresh, pressed
• Fuchsias– fresh, crystallized, freeze-dried
• Honeysuckle – fresh, pressed, freeze-dried
• Lilacs (pull off small florets) – fresh, crystallized
• Linaria (toadflax) – fresh, dried, pressed, crystallized
• Pansies and Violas – fresh, dried, pressed, freeze-dried, crystallized
• Pentas – fresh, pressed
• Primroses – fresh, dried, pressed
• Miniature roses – fresh, dried, freeze-dried, pressed
• Snapdragons – fresh, freeze-dried, crystallized
• Verbena – fresh, pressed

The placement of the flowers on your cake is very individualistic. I love using the cake surface as an artistic canvas and I place the flowers in a free form way as if I’m doing a flower arrangement. You can of course create a more stylised design.

• Use tweezers to navigate placing small flowers and leaves or a toothpick to move around small flowers.
• If you want to stick a heavier flower on the side of your cake, stick a toothpick into the back of the flower and push it into the cake. This will then ensure it stays in place.
• If you want a larger flower as a statement on your cake, then you can use the toothpick technique to secure it in place.

Where you put your flowers will significantly affect the impact of the cake’s overall design. Here are some ideas of what you can do:

• For a free, rustic look: Just place them on the icing or frosting where you want them to go. Smaller flowers such as violas, miniature roses, pansies, forget me knots, or violets are very easy to arrange in attractive ways. If there is no frosting, then stick them on the cake surface with a drop of jam or syrup.
• For a confetti-style look: pull the petals off larger flowers and scatter them across the top of the cake.
• For a mixed flower and fruit look: Use a mixture of fruits and flowers. Fresh fig pieces, raspberries, finger lime pulp, blueberries, and strawberries can all be nestled in to create your floral cake arrangement.
• For a cascading effect: Place the flowers in a waterfall pattern, flowing over the edge of the cake. I think this looks so effective.
• Free form: My favorite way is to free form. I think of the cake top as an art canvas or a flower arrangement. I’ll twirl pea vines around the edge and add different sized flowers with different textures and petal shapes to create a design or arrangement that takes my fancy! They are all unique!
• Single bloom: Cupcakes might only require a single bloom. Try using daisies, crucifix orchids or pentas florets
• Flower wreath: around the edge of the cake top. Place a couple of larger flowers such as cosmos, dahlias or chrysanthemums in intervals and fill in the gaps with smaller flowers such as elderflower, dianthus, and fuchsia.
• A cake topper. A couple of bright hibiscuses would look wonderful as a statement flower or a couple of orchids even.

Don’t forget to use some foliage and leaves as well. This gives a wonderful contrast and makes the decoration more natural and imitates a garden.

Using pressed edible flowers for cakes is my absolute favorite cake decorating technique. I’m seeing more and more of these decorated cakes, and I just love them!

Your cake takes on the essence of a meadow or a garden when the sides are decorated with pressed flowers. The pressed flowers can “grow” up the sides as if they are clambering up a garden wall. So much creativity. Add in the leaves and stalks and just press them on. Endless fun!

You can easily press flowers at home if you have a supply of fresh flowers. There are many flower presses on the market these days and they are so easy to use. Although there are alternative ways to press flowers if you don’t have a flower press, such as using heavy books or weights or using the microwave.

Here’s my post on How to Press Edible Flowers Ready for Use On Cakes

Blushing Cookhas provided me with so much inspiration and have got a bucket of new ideas around using florals on their baked products. They have taken the use of pressed flowers to decorate their cakes to another level!

One of their signature products is the most beautiful brownies that are covered in pressed flowers. I have ordered and had these delivered to friends in the UK – and they were mesmerized by the sight and flavor of such beautiful brownies. The photo above is of the box of wonderful floral chocolate goodies that they received.

I love making homemade gifts as they tend to be so much more appreciated and are fun to do as well. I’ve been using pressed flowers on some sweet treats which have been an absolute hit!

Pressed flowers look fabulous on:

• chocolate slabs, chocolate bark
• shortbread cookies
• iced biscuits
• homemade fudge
• homemade truffles
• cupcakes

They make special and exquisite gifts! Try it out for Christmas!

Freeze dried flowers are:“Dried edible flowers that look as beautiful on your cake, as they do in the garden”!

This quote comes from Bloomish Co who supply freeze dried flowers from their farm in Swan Hill, Victoria.

Freeze drying perfectly maintains the colour and form of the flower and is a great way of decorating with flowers that will last.

These flowers are amazing as they don’t look like they’re dried! Not only do they last well on the cake but they also keep well in the pantry until you need to use them.

The freeze-drying process maintains the integrity of the flower, where the colour and form looks very close to the fresh product.

You look as though you have fresh flowers on your cake but they’re actually dried!

Flowers dried in a dehydrator can also be used, although these tend to look dried, so don’t have quite the same appeal as those that are freeze dried.

Dried flowers will lose their color brightness and will tend to shrivel at the edges.

Having said that, they can still look delightful.

For a touch of sophistication, consider candying or crystallizing your edible flowers. Dipping them in egg white and then sugar creates a beautiful glistening effect, perfect for adding a textural contrast to your cake. Crystallized flowers also have a long shelf life and will keep for a couple of weeks if kept dry and cool.

Here’s a step by step guide for easy to make crystallized flowers for cakes.

Using edible flowers on cakes gives me a delightful opportunity to integrate 2 of my most favorite things. I love making people happy, and I really enjoy seeing the expression of joy when they see stunning floral designs on my cakes.

Each of my decoration efforts are completely unique and I never seem to do the same design twice. This is usually because I don’t have the same flowers available, or I make a different flavored cake. My garden is my inspiration and I enjoy having the freedom of creating a flower arrangement on my cakes which can vary from a simple cupcake to a larger celebration cake.

So, let your imagination and creativity flow and let edible flowers be your secret ingredient for creating cakes that are as stunning to the eyes as they are delicious.