Flora and Food - Brunch at the Botanical Garden

By Billa

The month of June is a great time to visit a garden. It is the beginning of the peak bloom season offering a vibrant display of flowers.

So, this past Sunday, my husband Martin and I went for a long walk in the Brooklyn Botanic Garden.

Besides flowers, there were also many spectacular vegetable plants. Here are some of my favorites:

Kale

Broccoli

Looking at all these all magnificent species made me hungry, so we stopped for brunch at the

Yellow Magnolia Cafe, an eatery in the garden.

Martin had a mocktail called Flower Spritz, which was made of hibiscus, rose, elderflower, and tonic. He said it was tart and tangy, slightly sweet and very refreshing.

I had an elderflower lemonade. It was somewhat sour but with a bright, fruity taste.

This is Martin’s challah French toast. It came with macerated blueberries and strawberries and mascarpone cheese. At home, French toast comes with just a slice of bread. Martin liked this version with the creaminess of the cheese and the sweetness of the tender, softened berries.

My smoked salmon tartine was composed of hearty country bread topped with cream cheese, lox, peppery watercress, pickled onions, herbs, and fried capers. All those elements made for a very flavorful dish. However, I had to scrape away some of the char on the edges of the bread and would have appreciated much more lox.

Overall, I'd say it was a nice way to spend a morning.