Lavender is just everywhere at the moment! Walking around London, I tend to smell it before I see it! It’s fabulous fragrance is so recognisable and the bees seem to love it too! There are always a few sniffing around the lavender bushes and window boxes in the city, enjoying its beauty and scent, just as much as we do. They even managed to sneak into the photo I took of the Lavender bush by my house. See below!
Lavender has all sorts of uses and as well as being ornamental, it is used frequently in cosmetics, perfumes, soaps, essential oils, herbal remedies and so on and so on. It’s often used in delicious recipes too, and flowering now, I thought it the perfect time to share one of my favourite, Summer recipes with you. Not only do I love creating beautiful arrangements for flower delivery in London and the rest of the UK, but I also adore getting creative in the kitchen and especially cooking and baking with flowers. Enjoy impressing your friends with this little gem-- the perfect companion to a relaxed, Summer dinner party! xxx
Ingredients:
1 cup granulated sugar
2 cups water
1 1/2 tablespoon specialist culinary lavender
2 and 1/2 tablespoons freshly-squeezed lemon juice
2 tablespoons vodka
Steps:
- Combine the sugar and water in a saucepan over a medium heat. Heat it until the sugar dissolves.
- When the sugar has fully dissolved add the lavender, then stir and bring to the boil, be careful not to burn it!
- Reduce the heat then simmer the mixture for around 5 minutes. Remove the mixture from the heat. Cover it and let stand for approximately 10 minutes until it makes a syrup-like mixture – this stage smells delicious!
- Place the strainer over a large bowl, and pour the mixture through it, catching all of the lavender flowers. Then add all of the lemon juice and the vodka, this helps to keep it light, soft and fabulously refreshing for those hot summer days!
- Pour the mixture into the container then place in the freezer. When it is half frozen, take it out and mash it with a fork (or potato masher!) and then put back in the freezer.
- In a day or two, when the mixture is solid, use a blender to mash it all up again, until smooth. Then refreeze again until time for serving.
