Most people are more interested in looking at flowers than eating them. But each year, the Allegheny County Parks Department adds flowers, herbs and other plants to food and drinks for an Edible Flowers Food Fest in South Park.

This year's event begins at 7:15 p.m. today at the Buffalo Inn in South Park. On the menu are Roasted Red Pepper Soup with Nasturiums, Chicken with Herbes de Provence, Sunny Shrimp (with pineapple and pineapple sage), Watermelon Salad (with feta cheese, black olives, parsley and mint) as well as the event's signature dessert, Rose Petal Ice Cream.

The featured speaker will be PG Backyard Garden columnist Doug Oster.

Cost is $20, cash or check at the door. Pre-registration is required by noon today. Call 412-835-8740 with your name, daytime telephone number and the number attending.

At this 10th anniversary dinner, two drinks (nonalcoholic) will be served, Strawberry Lavender Margaritas and Monarda Lemonade.

Denise Schreiber, who heads the county greenhouse, notes that the simple syrups can be made ahead of time. Her margaritas don't include alcohol but are served in margarita glasses with a sugared rim. Blueberries are added for color because cooked lavender turns an unappetizing gray green color.

Ms. Schreiber plans to include the recipes in a book with the working title "Eat Your Roses." Only the lemonade is PG-tested because my 'Hidcote' lavender was between blooms. (Only Lavender angustifolia is edible. Spanish lavender, or L. stoechas, is not.)

STRAWBERRY LAVENDER MARGARITAS

For the simple lavender syrup

• 1 1/4 cup of water
• 1 1/4 cup of sugar
• 1 tablespoon of dried culinary lavender such as 'Hidcote' or 'Munstead' or 3 tablespoons of fresh lavender flowers
• 1/4 cup blueberries (for color)

Combine together in a saucepan and boil for 5 minutes without stirring. Remove from heat, strain and cool. Chill after cooling. Discard buds and blueberries.

Juice of 8 freshly-squeezed lemons (approximately 1 1/2 cups)

• 6 cups cold water
• 1 pint of strawberries, washed, hulled and pureed
• 1/2 to 3/4 cup limoncello for the alcoholic version
• Sugar for rimming glasses

Combine all but the sugar in a pitcher with the simple lavender syrup, reserving 1/2 cup lavender syrup for rimming glasses and chill for an hour.

Pour 1/2 cup of syrup into a small dish and dip the rim of the glasses into the syrup, allowing it to drip off. Then dip into granulated sugar and allow the glasses to dry for about 15 minutes. Serve over crushed ice or you can freeze it to slushy consistency and serve it frozen.

- Denise Schreiber

MONARDA LEMONADE

For the simple monarda syrup

• 1 cup of sugar
• 1 cup of water
• 1 tablespoon of dried monarda (also known as bee balm) petals, stamens removed or 3 tablespoons of fresh monarda petals, stamens removed

Combine together in a saucepan and boil for 5 minutes without stirring. Remove from heat, strain and cool. Chill after cooling.

• 1 cup of fresh squeezed lemon juice
• 4 cups of cold water
• Ice

Combine lemon juice and water then add syrup and stir. Pour over ice and serve.

- Denise Schreiber

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