lavender

Eating My Way Through the Alphabet; Letter L

What’s Cooking in Gail’s Kitchen? A Burst of Flavor: Luscious Lavender Puff Cookies! Before we begin, let me assure you, baking the cookies for 45 minutes per batch, IS NOT a misprint. Dried lavender buds as well as lavender extract can be found at farmers markets, organic health food stores, or your local co-op. (I went one step further and made my own lavender extract from dried buds, which took longer to ferment.) I also have the convenience of a nearby Amish community as a resource for dried herbs and spices. These cookies are definitely worth the effort. Put on a pot of coffee or tea…. and enjoy!
LUSCIOUS LAVENDER PUFF COOKIES
Ingredients:

1 cup butter, softened

5 tablespoons sugar

1 tablespoon lavender buds

1 teaspoon lemon citrus peel, granulated

1 teaspoon lavender extract

1 teaspoon lemon extract

1/4 teaspoon sea salt

3/4 cup pecans, chopped

2 cups flour

Powdered Sugar for rolling. 

Lavender buds for garnish. 
Instructions:

Preheat oven to 300°. Beat butter until soft. Crush lavender buds in sugar using a mortar and pestle; then combine sugared lavender buds with butter. Blend until creamy. Mix in citrus peel, lavender extract, and lemon extract. Add pecans, flour, and salt to butter mixture. Combine thoroughly. Roll the dough into 1-inch balls, then place on ungreased cookie sheet. Bake 45 minutes or until set, but not brown. Remove from cookie sheet and cool on wire rack for 5 minutes. Roll in powdered sugar to coat when cookies are still slightly warm. Sprinkle with dried lavender buds. Cool completely on wire rack. 

Press On With Linen and Lavender 

I like to iron. I find comfort in it.  Maybe it’s because I’m a Baby-Boomer who grew up in an age where common sense meant making choices that gave one an advantage, a leg up, so to speak.  My family lived on a very limited income, so making the most of what we had was often all there was to make ends meet.  My closet contained a few skirts or dresses for school and special outfits for church.  Thank goodness I had older cousins who gifted me with hand-me-downs.  Yet, I didn’t mind.  My mother had a rigid schedule:  Wash clothes on Monday, Iron clothes on Tuesday, Clean the House on Wednesday, Mop the floors on Thursday, and so on.   

I began ironing my blue jeans when I was a teenager.  It came about more out of necessity simply because, at a time when most girls averaged between 5′ and 5’5″, my legs were very long.  And I was tall and skinny, which had me towering over my brothers and  most boys.  I discovered if I used a steam iron, I could stretch the denim to make the jeans longer.   Well, one thing led to another and before I knew it, I was ironing everything from tea towels to tee shirts.  
Nowadays, I revel in ironing my Turkish tea towels and French linens by spritzing them with Mary Ellen’s Best Press lavender-tinted starch alternative.  It smells like I’m ironing in the south of France.  The end result?  Everything is left with a crisp, new finish.  Yes, I still iron my blue jeans and tee shirts. Old habits die hard.  Every once in awhile I sneak one of my husband’s Oxford shirts into the laundry basket and mist it with the heavenly scent of French lavender while pressing it wrinkle free. Perhaps its lingering fragrance takes him somewhere in time.  Back to the days when we strolled down ancient cobblestone streets, sipping strong coffee in open cafés, basked in the warm sunshine holding hands, stealing kisses, eating baguettes, and drinking French wine.