Lavender seems to have it all: looks and smell, medicinal and antiseptic qualities, and culinary uses. It preserves well as an essential oil, dried flower or pot pourri ingredient. Bees love its generous nectar.
There's something very French about lavender - although more Mediterranean than Breton! However, that hasn't stopped us growing plenty in the garden. Today I used some to make lemon and lavender biscuits:
Cream together 100g butter and 50g caster sugar. Add 175g flour, 1 tbsp of fresh lavender flowers and the zest of about 1/3 lemon. Press together into a dough, and roll out.
Cut out the biscuits and place them on a greased baking tray. Cook in a hot oven (about 220C) for about 10 minutes until golden-brown. (The lavender flowers will still have their pretty green-and-blue appearance.) Cool on a wire rack, and then eat!
There's something very French about lavender - although more Mediterranean than Breton! However, that hasn't stopped us growing plenty in the garden. Today I used some to make lemon and lavender biscuits:
Cream together 100g butter and 50g caster sugar. Add 175g flour, 1 tbsp of fresh lavender flowers and the zest of about 1/3 lemon. Press together into a dough, and roll out.
Cut out the biscuits and place them on a greased baking tray. Cook in a hot oven (about 220C) for about 10 minutes until golden-brown. (The lavender flowers will still have their pretty green-and-blue appearance.) Cool on a wire rack, and then eat!
4 comments:
I have made lavender shortbread in the past, but I like the sound of lemon as an addition! (slopes off to check kitchen for ingredients...)
Feeling horribly philistine, waiting for gastro-post to comment ... typical, eh? But all the same: ça met l'eau à la bouche - YUM!
Have enjoyed catching up. Hope you're having a splendid time up there en Bretagne.
I'm having a great time, although it's a bit too hot for me - I burn horribly easily so am mostly lurking in the shade (or the kitchen)! I hope the weather in Nice is equally summery, especially for your dog-walking.
At the long gone Secret Garden restaurant in Camberwell they used to make a lavender creme brulee. The chef told me that the key was to infuse the milk used in the recipe by leaving lavender in it over night -remove lavender in the morning and get cooking.
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