If you haven’t seen it, you should check out the Tasty series “Make It Fancy!” on YouTube. Rie McClenny is challenged to make a typical food “fancy” by adding other foods to it. She transforms instant ramen, canned soup and Jolly Ranchers in recipes that take under 30 minutes.
Although I don’t think Rie has used culinary lavender on the series, I do think lavender is a secret culinary weapon for those who don’t love to bake/cook. Read on!
A neat thing about culinary lavender is that it’s not a staple in most kitchens. This means it still feel fancy to use and eat!
Even better…. Lavender can easily be added to pre-packaged batters and mixes to amp up the deliciousness. See, I told you. A culinary secret weapon!
We're all busy. And not everyone loves spending their precious spare time in the kitchen. So here are some lavender ideas that will Impress others (and yourself) with limited ingredients or a pre-packaged mix.
Lavender Tea
Add a sprinkle of whole lavender buds to your favourite loose leaf tea. Lavender works well with Earl Grey, Chamomile, Lemongrass, Lemon, and Rooibos. Lavender adds sweet herbaceous floral notes to tea. Steep for 5-10 minutes.
Lavender Cream Cheese for Bagels
Add 1/2 tsp of crushed lavender buds to 8 oz (or 1 cup) of softened cream cheese. You can also add salt, rosemary, thyme or even honey.
Lavender Brownies
Add a heaping tsp (or two) of crushed lavender buds to your favourite boxed brownie mix. Stir in the lavender when you add your liquids.
Lavender Blueberry Muffins
Add a heaping tsp of crushed lavender buds to a pre-packaged blueberry muffin mix. Add the lavender at the same time as the liquids.
Lavender Pancakes
Add a heaping tsp of crushed lavender buds for every 8 pancakes. You can add the lavender directly into the batter or sprinkle onto the pancakes right after you add the batter to the pan.
Lavender Lemonade
This is a bit more complicated, as you need to create a lavender simple syrup first. But, thankfully, all you need is some culinary lavender, sugar and water. Once you have your lavender simple syrup, add this to your favourite lemonade recipe in place of the sugar/sweetener typically used.
Any questions? Or suggestions to add to the list? I'd love to know; pop them in the comments section below.
xo, Stephanie