Cooking with lavender a new treat

By JANE KABLER

Wednesday, June 13, 2007 10:29 PM EDT

In ancient Rome, lavender was used for healing and antiseptic qualities, to deter insects and for washing. Historians believed that even Adam and Eve took lavender with them when they were banished from the Garden of Eden. Legends say that Mary laid baby Jesus' clothes upon a bush of lavender to dry. It was thought that lavender warded off evil and was a safeguard against disease.

It is also associated with love, evident by maidens slipping a little lavender in the drinks of their true loves. Some of the young maidens slipped a little lavender in the pillow case thinking the lover would turn their thoughts to love and romance. The Egyptians and other people bathed in lavender scented water and some drank lavender water for bad headaches. In England it was used for bathing, scrubbing floors, to freshen the linens and for baths. The French had their lambs graze on lavender to make the meat tender and fragrant.

We now are seeing a resurgence of this fragrant herb being used in so many different ways. It was fun to try new recipes and test taste. Try a few recipes and see how delightful!

LAVENDER LEMONADE

1 quart of lemonade

1 tablespoon of dried lavender buds or crushed lavender

1 cup of boiling water

Pour boiling water over the lavender buds or crushed lavender and let it steep 20 minutes. Strain and discard the buds or crushed lavender pieces and add liquid to the lemonade. Refrigerate and serve over crushed ice.

AVOCADO DIP FOR TORTILLA CHIPS

3 ripe avocados

3 tablespoons of lime or lemon juice

1/2 teaspoon of salt

1 tablespoon of diced onion

1 tablespoon of diced tomato

1/2 teaspoon of pepper

1 tablespoon of lavender buds, finely crushed

3/4 cup of sour cream

1 teaspoon of onion powder

1 teaspoon of garlic powder

Mix all of the above, and beat with a mixer. Refrigerate for 4 hours.

LAVENDER AND HONEY SALAD DRESSING

6 tablespoons of light virgin olive oil

2 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar

1 tablespoon of fresh lemon juice

1 crushed garlic clove

1 tablespoon of coarse grain mustard

2 tablespoons of honey

1 tablespoon of dried lavender buds, finely crushed.

Whisk all ingredients together. Let stand for 30 minutes. Whisk again and serve. Can be stored up to one week.

LAVENDER GRILLED SALMON

3 pounds of salmon fillets

4 tablespoons of honey

6 tablespoons of olive oil

1 tablespoon of dried lavender buds, crushed

1/4 cup of white wine

1 tablespoon of Worcestershire sauce

1 tablespoon of lemon juice

Place all ingredients, except salmon, in a saucepan over moderate heat, stir with a whisk until ingredients are reduced by 1/3. When sauce is cool, brush on fish.

Grill or bake salmon until flaky, about 10 minutes, keep basting with sauce. Serve with any left over sauce.

LAVENDER FRENCH CHICKEN

4-5 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

2 cloves of garlic, minced

1/4 cup of olive oil

1 tablespoon of dried lavender buds, crushed

1 teaspoon of thyme

1/2 teaspoon of rosemary

1 teaspoon of sage

Rinse the chicken and pat dry with a paper towel. Brown garlic in oil. Place chicken in a glass casserole dish and pour garlic and oil over the chicken. Combine herbs and sprinkle over the chicken. Bake at 350 degrees for 50 minutes or until done.

LAVENDER PORK MARINADE

3/4 cup of fresh mint

2 tablespoons of dried lavender buds, crushed

3 tablespoons of garlic minced

1/4 cup of soy sauce

3 tablespoons of fresh orange juice

3 tablespoons of olive oil, light

3-4 lb. pork loin

Place a small pork loin in a plastic bag with this marinate and leave overnight in the refrigerator. Turn occasionally, or shake the plastic bag.

Remove from marinate and bake at 350 degrees, covered, for one hour and leave in the oven turned off for another hour, covered. Cool, slice and refrigerate.

LAVENDER HONEY BUNCHES

3 cups of quick oats

1 cup of butter

2 cups of flake coconut

1/2 cup of honey

1 cup of all purpose flour

1 teaspoon of dried lavender buds, crushed

1 cup of backed brown sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine oats, coconut and flour in a large mixing bowl. Bring butter, honey, sugar and lavender to a boil. Pour over dry ingredients and mix well. Drop by tablespoon into lightly greased muffin tins. Bake for 12 minutes or until lightly browned.

LAVENDER RUM CAKE

1 package of yellow cake mix

1 package of large instant vanilla pudding mix

1/2 cup of vegetable oil

1/2 cup of light rum

1/2 cup of water

4 medium eggs

1/2 cup of chopped pecans

1 teaspoon of dried lavender buds, finely crushed

Glaze: 1/4 cup of butter

1/4 cup of water

1 cup of sugar

1 /2 cup of rum

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Grease and flour bundt cake pan. In a small mixing bowl, toss chopped nuts with one teaspoon of lavender. Sprinkle nut mixture over the bottom of the pan. In a large bowl, beat together cake mix, pudding, vegetable oil, rum and water. Add eggs and the remaining lavender until smooth. Do not over-beat. Pour batter over nuts. Bake for 60 minutes. The cake is done when a toothpick comes out clean. Cool down for a minute or two and then turn out onto a wire rack to cool.

Glaze: Bring the butter, water and sugar to a boil, stirring constantly. Remove from the heat and let stand for one minute. Add rum and stir. Punch holes into the cake with a skewer. Brush and spoon the glaze over the cake. Let it set up for a few minutes and add the rest of the glaze.

LAVENDER WHIPPED CREAM

1 tablespoon of dried lavender buds, crushed,

2 heaping tablespoons of sugar

1 cup of heavy whipping cream

Crush lavender and add to sugar, add cream. Chill for an hour. Strain the lavender and add a teaspoon of vanilla. Whip the cream until stiff, serve with cake, berries or muffins.

LAVENDER BLUEBERRY MUFFINS

3/4 cup of sugar

3 cups of all purpose flour

2 tablespoons of baking powder

1/2 teaspoon of salt

1/3 cup of vegetable oil

1 1/4 cup of milk

1 tablespoon of fresh lemon juice

1 tablespoon of finely grated lemon zest

1 teaspoon of dried lavender buds, crushed very fine

3 large eggs, beaten

1 cup of fresh blueberries

Coarse sugar crystals for the top of the muffins

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Combine the first four ingredients in a large bowl. In a separate bowl, combine the lemon juice with milk and let it stand for five minutes. Add the rest of the wet ingredients including the lemon zest, lavender and blueberries to the milk and lemon juice mixture. Gradually stir the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients until all are moistened. Bake 30 minutes. Cool completely. Makes 12 muffins. Tip: Dust with coarse sugar crystals when removing from the oven and still hot or five minutes before cooking time is up.

LAVENDER SORBET

3 cups of water

1/2 cup of sugar

2 tablespoons of dried lavender buds, not crushed

Juice of 1 fresh lemon

Combine lavender buds and sugar in a food processor and pulverize completely, about one minute. Bring the water to a boil, remove from heat and add the sugar/lavender mixture to the water to dissolve sugar. Cover with a lid and let it cool about 30 minutes. Strain out lavender pieces through a sieve, and press out any remaining liquid. Add the lemon juice and chill in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours, then freeze in sorbet or ice cream mixer.

LAVENDER SUGAR COOKIES

5/8 cup of butter

1/2 cup of granulated sugar

1 egg, beaten

1 teaspoon of dried lavender buds, crushed

1 1/2 cups of flour

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Cream the butter and 1/2 cup of sugar together, add the beaten egg, mix the teaspoon of crushed lavender to the ingredients and add flour. Drop by the spoonfuls onto a greased cookie sheet. Bake 20 minutes or until golden brown. While baking mix up the topping.

Topping: While still warm, mix 1 teaspoon of crushed dried lavender with 1/4 cup of sugar and sprinkle on top of the cookies.

LAVENDER HONEY

8 ounces of honey

4 tablespoons of dried lavender buds, not crushed

Heat the honey and lavender on low in a small crock pot for 2-3 hours. Remove from heat and allow to partially cool. Strain out the lavender and put honey in a jar.

LAVENDER ICE CREAM

4 egg yolks

1 cup of sugar

2/3 cup of half-and-half

3 dried lavender buds, not crushed

2/3 cup of cream

2 cups of milk

Whisk the egg yolks and sugar together until light and foamy. Gently heat the half-and-half with the dried lavender buds, bring to a easy boil for three minutes, strain out lavender buds, cool for five minutes and then add slowly to the egg yolk mixture. Return the mixture to the stove and cook over a very low heat, stirring constantly until it is slightly thickened and will coat the back of the spoon. Do not let it boil. Pour the custard into a bowl, and refrigerate until completely cold. Whip the cream just until it forms peaks and fold it into the custard. Add the remaining two cups of milk. Place in an ice cream maker and freeze. Serve with thin, lemon cookies.

PICK OF THE WEEK

CARROT CASSEROLE

DIANA STAGGS

2 pounds of fresh carrots, sliced

2 tablespoons of margarine, melted

8 oz. of Velveeta cheese, cubed

8 oz. of cream cheese, cubed

4 green onions, sliced thinly

Boil carrots until tender crisp and drain in a colander. While carrots are draining use the same pan and warm the margarine and add Velveeta, when almost melted add the cream cheese and melt. Stir constantly, on low heat until melted. Turn off heat and add green onion slices and drained carrots.

Place in a greased 9 X 13 pan and add mixture. Place one stack of Ritz cracker, crushed on top and one stick of melted margarine. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes or until bubbly and browned. Tip: This can be made ahead and stored in the refrigerator until time to bake.