Strawberries with ginger lavender

With Strawberry season in full swing, I’m getting ready to make some strawberry lavender jam.  Lavender is a great compliment to any type of berry but those beautiful luscious local red strawberries are accented perfectly with tiny little purple buds of lavender.  There are so many lovely ways to serve lavender and strawberries together from soup to sorbet to tarts but today I’ve decided to experiment with a simple lavender syrup recipe with a twist.

Ingredients

1 lb. of Strawberries (quartered)

1/3 cup of sugar

2/3 cup of water

2 Tablespoons of Serenity Culinary Lavender

2 Tablespoons of Limoncello (Lemon Flavoured liqueur)

1 tsp grated fresh ginger

1/2 tsp culinary lavender

Instructions

Rinse and drain Strawberries.  Hull and cut into quarters in a large bowl and set aside.

In a small saucepan over low heat combine water,  sugar and lavender and simmer stirring occasionally until the sugar is dissolved.  Remove from heat. Place lid over top for about 15 minutes to allow the syrup mixture to steep and the lavender infuse the mixture.

Strain the syrup and discard the blossoms.

Add ginger and lemoncello into the syrup mixture.

Pour the syrup mixture over the straberries. Add 1/2 teaspoon of dried culinary lavender and toss gently.  Serve the berries in glass bowls or stemmed glasses.  Garnish with Whipped cream and fresh lavender stems.

Makes 4 servings

Come  to Serenity Lavender wearing your finest hats and gloves on Saturday, June 23rd  from 1-3pm to Serenity Lavender’s Victorian High Tea. Enjoy a delectable array of finger sandwiches, scones, deserts and or course our teas amidst the sereneness of teh lavender blooms.  Tickets are $25.00 per person. Seating is limited so call today to reserve your tickets.  519 980-4504 Visa and Mastercard accepted

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Fresh Sandwiches

Cucumber Mint

Goat Cheese and Roasted Red Pepper Pinwheel

Ham and Pickle

Lavender Onion Tartlet

Home Baked English Scones

  Served with clotted crème, lavender jelly and raspberry lavender jam

Selection of Petit Fours

Choice of Serenity Lavender Teas

Lavender, Lavender Earl Grey, Lavender Green Tea,  Provence Rooibos

Victorian High Tea at Serenity Lavender

Chewy, chocolately with just the right amount of lavender. My family just loves these. When I make a batch they’re gone before the next day. Truly yummyliscious!

Ingredients:
1 cup of sugar
1/2 cup of butter
2 eggs
1/2 cup of flour
1/3 cup of unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon dried culinary lavender
1/4 cup chocolate chips
1/4 cup walnuts (optional)

Cream the butter and sugar. Beat in eggs and mix until smooth. In a separate bowl sift together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder. Add salt and lavender. Blend dry ingredients into the egg mixture. Mix in chocolate chips and walnuts. Pour into a greased 8×8 inch pan. Bake 25-30 minutes at 350 degrees or until a toothpick comes out clean. Top with your favourite chocolate frosting for an even more decadent experience!

Just in time for the Holidays we have signed copies of the award winning Harrow Fair Cookbook available. Quantities are limited so order early to avoid disappointment!

http://www.macleans.ca/article.jsp?content=e13505312

If you love crème brulee you must try this recipe.  The delicate floral flavor of lavender is heavenly!

Yields: 6 to 8 servings
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 60 min

Ingredients:

4 cups heavy cream
1 tablespoon Serenity Lavender’s Culinary lavender
8 egg yolks
3/4 cup granulated sugar, divided

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 300 degrees.

In a large, heavy saucepan over medium heat, add cream and the lavender flowers; heat just to a simmer. Remove from heat and allow lavender flowers to infuse with the cream for 15 minutes. Strain cream mixture through a fine mesh strainer to remove lavender flowers.

In a large bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and 1/2 cup sugar until light and creamy. Slowly add the strained cream to the egg mixture, blending well. Divide custard mixture among the custard cups.

Arrange the custard cups in a oven proof roasting or baking pan.  Prepare water for the water bath by bringing enough water to a simmer. Carefully pour the hot water into the baking pan to come half-way up the sides of the custard cups.

Bake 60 minutes or until set around the edges but still loose in the center. The cooking time will depend largely on the size of the custard cups you are using, but begin checking at a half hour and check back regularly. When the center of the custard is just set, it will jiggle a little when shaken, that’s when you can remove it from the oven.

Remove from oven and leave in the water bath until cooled. Remove cups from water bath and refrigerate at least 2 hours or up to 2 days.

When ready to serve, sprinkle approximately 2 teaspoons of remaining sugar over each crème brulee and using a small hand-held torch melt the sugar until a golden brown crust is formed.

Peaches, Lavender and  Harrow go hand in hand.  Did you know that varieties such as Harrow Beauty, Harrow Fair,  Harbright and Harrow Diamond, just to name a few, were developed right in our own backyard at the Agriculture  Agri-food Canada Harrow Research Station?  While we no longer celebrate these achievements at the Peach Festival, but we still love our peaches which are bursting with sweet rich ripeness right now and available at your local Harrow fruit stands picked just hours before your purchase.

So this season for something try the  flavours of lavender and peach

Ingredients:

6  -8  peaches

2 cups of water

1 cup of sugar

1 Tablespoon of Serenity’s culinary lavender

1 bay leaf or clove

Preparation

In a medium saucepan combine the sugar and water and over medium heat stir until the sugar is  disolved and the mixture is clear.  Remove from heat and add the lavender and bay leaf and steep for 10-15 minutes.  Strain the herbs from the liquid and return the liquid to the saucepan and bring to a boil.  Add  peaches and cook for 2-3 minutes until the peaches are tender.  I like mine a bit firmer.  Remove peaches from the liquid with a slotted spoon. Let them cool down a bit. Peel the skin, pit and slice in half.   Continue to cook until liquid is reduced to 1/2 cup.   Place 2 peach halves on a plate and drizzle with syrup. Serve with ice cream or for something more decadent try it with marscapone cheese or devon cream.  Garnish with a fresh lavender sprigs, mint or bay leaf.

Its thats time of year when the local berries are in season and so is the lavender which is a perfect complement to the raspberries and blueberries.

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons dried Serenity culinary lavender buds
• 2 tablespoons quick-cooking tapioca
• 1 1/4 cups sugar
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 4 cups blueberries, rinsed
• 4 cups raspberries, rinsed
• 3 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup (1/4 lb.) butter, cut into 1/2-inch chunks
• 1/2 cup chopped almonds

Preparation

• 1. In a blender, whirl lavender and tapioca until finely ground. Pour into a large bowl. Stir in 3/4 cup sugar and the cinnamon. Add blueberries, raspberries, and lemon juice; mix gently. Pour into a shallow 2 1/2- to 3-quart baking dish.
• 2. In a food processor or bowl, combine flour, remaining 1/2 cup sugar, and butter. Whirl or rub in with your fingers until coarse crumbs form. Stir in almonds. Squeeze handfuls of the nut mixture together, then crumble into about 1/2-inch chunks over fruit mixture. Set dish on a foil-lined baking pan.
• 3. Bake in a 350° oven until juices are bubbling in the center and streusel is browned, 60 to 70 minutes. Cool on a rack at least 45 minutes.  Serve warm or cool with vanilla or lavender ice cream