This is a blooming caper flower. So, if the bud is picked before the flower blooms, that’s what is preserved and eaten with fish and vegetables. This same plant bears a fruit known as a caper berry, also eaten. Sicily is a major producer of capers, and the island of Pantelleria, off of Sicily’s southeast coast, far out in the Mediterranean Sea, is world-renowned for its excellent capers. Just thinking about their salty, sharp, tart flavor makes my mouth water!