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| COOKING
WITH LAVENDER |
FOOD
& COOKING ARTICLE |
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 Lavender
is an incredibly versatile herb for cooking. In today's
upscale restaurants, fresh edible flowers are making
a comeback as enhancements to both the flavor and appearance
of food. As a member of the same family as many of our
most popular herbs, it is not surprising that lavender
is edible so it is not surprising that its use in food
preparation is also returning. Flowers and leaves can
be used fresh, and both buds and stems can be used dried.
The
uses of lavender are limited only by your imagination.
The flowers add a beautiful color to salads. Lavender
can also be substituted for rosemary in many bread recipes.
The
spikes and leaves of lavender can be used in most dishes
in place of rosemary in most recipes. Use the spikes
or stems for making fruit or shrimp kabobs. Just place
your favorite fruit on the stems and grill.
Lavender
has a sweet, floral flavor, with lemon and citrus notes.
Flowers look beautiful and taste good too in a glass
of champagne, with chocolate cake, or as a garnish for
sorbets or ice creams. Lavender lends itself to savory
dishes also, from hearty stews to wine-reduced sauces.
Diminutive blooms add a mysterious scent to custards,
flans or sorbets. Dried lavender blossoms used in perfumes
and pot pourris.
Note:
Do not eat flowers from florists, nurseries or
garden centers. In many cases these flowers have been
treated with pesticides not labeled for food crops.
Harvesting
Fresh Lavender
Harvest
flowers as you would fruit, selecting those that look
most perfectly ready, with the fullest color, and passing
over any that seem wilted or less ripe. The fresher
the flower, the more flavorful its taste, so pick your
flowers as close as possible to food preparation time.
Stem flowers may be put in a glass of water in a cool
place until you are ready to use them. All blooms should
be thoroughly rinsed. Immerse them in water to remove
any insects or soil. Then lay the flowers gently on
paper or cloth towels and dab dry, or gently spin dry
in a salad spinner. If necessary, layer blooms carefully
between moist paper towels in the refrigerator until
meal time.
Myths
Regarding Lavender
- Repel
the devil by binding the lavender into the shape of
a cross and suspending it above doorways as a talisman
to ward off witches.
- As
a test for chastity, it was supposed to wither in
the hands of the impure.
- Placed
in a man’s right shoe to ensure fidelity.
- Baked
with caraway into small cakes by seamen’s wives
to ensure their fidelity.
- Made
into a vinegar and used by robbers to protect themselves
from the plague while robbing their helpless victims.
History
of Lavender
Lavender
has been a favorite herb for centuries. The historic
use and recognition of lavender is almost as old the
history of man. As an herb, lavender has been in documented
use for over 2,500 years. In ancient times lavender
was used for mummification and perfume by the Egyptian's,
Phoenicians, and peoples of Arabia. The Greeks and the
Romans bathed in lavender scented water and it was from
the Latin word "lavo" meaning "to
wash" that the herb took it's name.
Lavender
is often mentioned in the Bible, not by the name lavender
but rather by the name used at that time - Spikenard.
In the gospel of Luke the writer reports: "Then
took Mary a pound of ointment of spikenard, very costly,
and anointed the feet of Jesus, and wiped his feet with
her hair; and the house was filled with the odor of
the ointment."
Perhaps
first domesticated by the Arabians, lavender spread
across Europe from Greece. Around 600 BC lavender may
have come from the Greek Hyeres Islands into France
and is now common in France, Spain, Italy and England.
The
'English' lavender varieties were not locally developed
in England but rather introduced in the 1600s right
around the time the first lavender plants were making
their way to the Americas.
Recipes
by Linda using Lavender:
This
article has been published with the kind permission
of Linda Stradley who runs the What's Cooking America
web site <click
here> and has a new book available called I'll
Have What They're Having: Legendary Local Cuisine -
for details or to purchase <click
here>
©
Linda Stradley - What's Cooking America
Email
Hub-UK : info@hub-uk.com
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