Slow-roast lamb with lavender, lemon & apricots

This fragrant, Middle East-inspired take on a classic roast swaps rosemary for lavender to help cut through the lamb's richness. Delicious with a fruit-forward Rioja or Lebanese red

- ERIN BUNTING

Edible flowers are so much more than a pretty garnish on a fancy plate plate of food. I use flowers for their flavour, much like herbs; nasturtiums for a peppery punch, magnolia for a gingery kick, borage brings a cooling cucumber flavour, or lavender for that cleansing, menthol note. I use them for their beauty; a handful of calendula and cornflower petals scattered through a green salad transforms it from an E everyday dish to something truly special. And I use them to connect to the seasons, noting the first primroses peeping through the frozen earth in February and eagerly awaiting the musky elderflower blooms in June. Not to mention the huge benefits they bring to the garden, attracting pollinators, creating biodiversity and bringing so much delight and joy. For me, growing and cooking with flowers is a way to bring beauty, seasonality and unique flavours to my food.

THE RECIPE