Lavender Recipes - Cooking With Lavender

English Lavender is the most common variety used in cooking. Lavender has a sweet, floral flavor with a hint of mint. There are varieties that are too camphourous for cooking, so purchase culinary lavender for your recipes to ensure good flavor. Fresh or dry lavender can be substituted in cooking however lavender flavor increases with drying. Use a third of the amount of dried lavender if recipe calls for fresh. A little goes a long way, experiment with a pinch of this herb for your own marinades or dry rubs and increase to taste for the next creation.

The following recipes use dried culinary lavender

Lavender Lemonade

2 ½ cups water
1 ½ cups sugar
1 large lavender tea bag
2 ½ cups water
1 cup lemon juice
Ice cubes

Preparation:
In small sauce pan, add
2 ½ cups water
1 ½ cups sugar
Heat until sugar dissolves. Add lavender tea bag and let cool to room temperature. Remove tea bag. In a 2 quart pitcher, add remaining water, lemon juice and lavender sugar infusion. Add more sugar or lemon to taste. Serve chilled over ice and garnish with lavender sprig.

Quicker method: Use one can of frozen lemonade concentrate and pour content into pitcher. In a sauce pan measure 3 1/2 cans of water, bring to boil and add large lavender tea bag. Turn off heat and let steep until room temperature. Remove tea bag and add infusion to pitcher with lemonade concentrate. Stir and serve over ice. If you leave the tea bag in overnight, the tea will turn a very light pinkish color and will have a stronger flavor which I prefer.

Lavender Glazed Pork Tenderloin

Sprinkle apple cider vinegar over pork. Let marinate for 30 minutes or longer. Before cooking meat, season pork with salt and pepper. Bake in oven uncovered or grill until desired meat temperature/doneness. In a small pan, add 4 tablespoons of Lavender Jelly and melt until jelly is liquid. Serve on top of meat. This will work for duck or lamb also.
Variation: Using pork chops, marinate meat with cider vinegar. Cook chops in skillet with olive oil adding ½ cup white wine after both sides of chops are golden. When pork is almost cooked, remove from pan. With meat removed but pan still heated, deglaze pan with ½ cup white wine and add 4 tablespoons of Lavender Jelly. As soon as this is liquefied, add meat and coat both sides. Remove from heat and serve.

Lavender Sorbet

1 cup sugar
2 cups water
1 tablespoon culinary lavender
2 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons vodka
In a medium saucepan, heat sugar and water until the sugar dissolves. Add the lavender; bring to a boil while stirring occasionally; reduce heat and simmer 5 minutes. Remove from heat and let steep 10 minutes. Strain lavender flowers from syrup mixture. In a bowl, add syrup mix with lemon juice and vodka. Stir. Transfer mixture to ice cream maker, process according to manufacturer's instructions.

Lavender Beef

4 pounds beef tenderloin
1 tablespoon olive oil
Grind using spice grinder or mortar and pestle
2 tablespoons whole black peppercorns
1 1/2 tablespoons fennel seeds
2 teaspoons thyme
2 tablespoons culinary lavender
Rub beef with oil, then rub ground herbs over meat. Cover and let herbs infuse for a minimum 2 hours (preferably overnight) in refrigerator. Preheat oven to 425°F. Place meat in uncovered pan and roast for 15 minutes to seal in juices. Reduce oven to 325°F and cook until desired temperature/doneness. Remove from oven and let stand 15 minutes prior to carving. Serve with roasted potatoes and a green salad.

Chocolate Lavender Truffles

1 cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon culinary lavender
12 ounces bittersweet chocolate
1 cup unsweetened cocoa

Grate chocolate. Bring cream and lavender to a simmer for one minute, then strain. Add cream to chocolate and stir to melt. Mix well. Chill at least 3 hours. Roll into 1 inch balls, and then roll in cocoa.
Makes 25 truffles

Lavender-Honey Cheese Spread

8 ounces goat cheese
4 ounces cream cheese, softened
1/3 cup plain yogurt
1/4 cup toasted walnuts
1/3 cup honey + 1 tablespoon, divided
2 1/2 teaspoons culinary Lavender, divided
1 teaspoon orange zest

Toasted baguette slices, crackers, and/or fresh fruit (apple/pear slices)

Place goat cheese, cream cheese, yogurt, walnuts, 1/3 cup honey, 2 teaspoons of lavender, and orange zest in food processor. Blend until smooth. Pour into serving bowl.
Drizzle remaining 1 tablespoon of honey on top and sprinkle remaining 1/2 teaspoon of lavender on top for garnish. Serve with toasted baguette, crackers or fresh fruit slices.

Strawberry Lavender Muffins

Makes 18 medium muffins
1 ¼ cup vanilla soy milk
¾ cup maple syrup
1 1/2 tbsp culinary lavender
1 cup unsweetened apple sauce
4 cups flour
¼ cup sugar
1 tbsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
½ cup diced fresh strawberries
1/3 cup canola oil

Grease muffin tins and preheat oven to 350°F. Heat the soy milk, maple syrup and lavender in a saucepan and bring to a gentle boil over medium low heat. Stir to avoid burning. Remove from the heat, cover and steep for 5 minutes. Strain through a fine sieve and add applesauce. Set aside and until room temperature. In a large bowl, combine dry ingredients, add strawberries and toss to coat. Add the milk mixture and the oil to the dry and mix gently until the batter is combined. Do not over mix. Pour into muffin tins and bake for 25 minutes.

Lavender Blueberry Ice Cream

1 cup blueberries, rinsed
3/4 cup sugar
2 T dried culinary lavender
1/2 tsp vanilla
3 cups half and half

In a 2 qt saucepan, over medium heat, stire blueberries, sugar and 1/2 c water until blueberries pop.  Pour mixture thru fine strainer over a bowl. Pour blueberries into a blender. Place berry syrup into a pan.
Add lavender to syrup and stir over medium heat for 5 minutes. Strain to remove lavender.
Add cinnamon and vamilla to blender and mix. Pour into syrup bowl and place in fridge or on a bed of ice til chilled. When liquid is cold, stir in half and half.
Place mixture into ice cream maker and freeze accordingly to manufacturer's directions.
Makes 5 cups

Lavender Cloud Cookies

2 egg whites
3/4 cup white sugar
1 Tbsp. dried Lavender
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 cup mini chocolate chips
1/4 cup chopped crystalized ginger or 1/4 cup chopped dried cranberries
Preheat oven to 350°F.
Beat egg whites until stiff.Add sugar gradually, while still beating on high.
Finely grind the Lavender. Tip the meringue base into a medium bowl and gently fold in Lavender,
vanilla, chocolate and ginger/cranberries. Do not overmix. Drop by small teaspoons onta a cookie sheet
lined with parchment paper. Place in oven and immediately turn the heat OFF.
Leave overnight, then store in airtight tin. Makes approx. 30.