This Chennai home chef creates edible floral masterpieces

CHENNAI: Chennai-based home chef Shefalii Dadabhoy has been captivating people with her exquisite artisanal floral brownies. In just two years, she has managed to expand her delivery services nationwide, surprising customers with her unique creations. Shefalii’s journey began with her passion for organic farming on her terrace, where she has been cultivating edible flowers for more than four years.

Aside from her renowned pressed flower brownies, Shefalii specialises in a variety of other delectable treats, including pavlovas, granolas, and gluten-free cakes. She believes that there are countless edible flowers and leaves that people are unaware of and hopes to raise awareness by incorporating them into various culinary creations such as salads, teas, and more.

“Pressed flower brownies have become very popular, and each brownie is meticulously designed and crafted separately. The brownie varieties include classic fudgy brownies, chocolate raspberry brownies, and chocolate chip pecan blondies. All the edible flowers used in the brownies are taken from my organic terrace garden,” says India’s only floral brownie artist.

Shefalii points out that each edible flower has its own unique taste and texture, and no two types of flowers are truly alike. “Depending on their flavour, certain flowers pair well with different types of desserts and are suitable for brewing tea.

Incorporating edible flowers directly into plated dishes is a recent trend, despite the prevalence of consuming flowers in various forms such as hibiscus syrup, chamomile tea, and rose gulkhand,” says Shefalii.

Recognising the vast potential in the edible floral market, Shefalii incorporates a wide variety of flowers in her creations. “I source flowers from my terrace garden as well as from Ooty and other places. Some of the flowers I use include calendula, pansy, dianthus, roses, hibiscus, blue pea, moringa, and many more,” says the home baker.

With her ongoing efforts to raise awareness about the diverse range of edible flowers available, she hopes to encourage more people to explore the culinary possibilities and add a touch of beauty to their meals.