Safflower is an annual broadleaf plant in the aster family that produces rounded yellow or reddish-orange flower heads and rosettes of branched leaves, like a thistle. It is one of the oldest known crops with a history of cultivation dating to ancient Egypt.

Because the herb, especially the flower, is sometimes used in cooking as a substitute for saffron, safflower is also known as bastard saffron.

What else you should know:

Safflower is a hardy, thistle-like annual plant in the daisy family that is believed to have been domesticated in the Fertile Crescent region of the Middle East more than 4,000 years ago. Tourists visiting the region sometimes mistake the prepared herb for saffron, earning the nicknames false saffron and bastard saffron.