On Holidays!

                                    We are enjoying the Summer time at the lake.

                                                        New recipes coming soon!

Lavender Lemonade

Lavender Lemonade

It's Summer finally! The temperatures are soaring and we start enjoying our backyard even more. There is nothing better than a good BBQ with neighbors and friends, while kids and pets are playing in the yard and adults are having conversations over some cool and refreshing drinks.

This Lavender Lemonade is without any additional coloring. Our culinary lavender gives it the rich and deep color and a flavor which will remind you of Summer.

Since the culinary lavender in our lavender field is already harvested, dried, stripped, and screened I am more than excited to use this lovely purple plant material for a fresh lavender lemonade.
This lemonade is great for kids on a hot summer day! The lavender and honey are calming while the lemon and lime are refreshing. Served over ice with a slice of lemon and a lavender sprig it can make a designer drink blush.
For the 'adult' variation add a shot of gin or vodka to it. You've got to try it, it tastes great! Cheers!

The recipe is simple and does not take long at all.

This is what you need:

4-5 lemons
1 lime
5 1/2 cups of water
1/2 cup of dried culinary lavender
3/4 cup of honey (you can substitute with sugar)

• Take the zest of two limes and put it aside.
• Squeeze 4-5 lemons and the lime and put aside (this should be approx. 3/4 of a cup of lime/lemon juice).
• Bring the 5 1/2 cups of water to a boil and stir in 1/2 cup of the culinary lavender. Also, add the lemon zest. 
• Boil for 1 minute on high heat, than reduce heat, cover pot and simmer for 10 minutes on low heat. 
• Use a sieve lined with a folded cheesecloth to separate the liquid from the lemon zest and lavender buds. 
• Add 3/4 cups of honey to the hot liquid, the juice of 4-5 lemons, and the juice of 1 lime.    

This is probably the most impressive part. As soon as the lemon juice is added the color of the lemonade turns into a very vibrant pink.         

• Let the lemonade cool down.
• Serve over ice cubes.
• Garnish with lemon slices and lavender sprigs.

For adults only:
Don't forget to try the 'spirited' variation with a shot of gin or vodka.

CHEERS!                                                    

PROST!
NASTROVJE!
Skal!

Lavender Almond Pound Cake

Lavender Almond Pound Cake 

There is something heart warming to me about the summertime and pound cakes. Every year during my childhood my Family and I spent the entire summer in Austria and the birthdays of my brother and my dad fell into this amazing vacation time. Every year Anni, our host, backed a pound cake for their birthdays. Those days were very special to me and every time I bake a pound cake I recall those happy days from my childhood.

Today, I would like to share the happiness a little with this ‘Almond Lavender Pound Cake’. This cake is heavy and moist and the combination with lavender is super delicious.

Happy baking!                          


This is what you need for the cake:

2 ½ cups all –purpose flour
½ tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
4 eggs
1cup butter (softened)
½ cup slivered almonds
2 cups sugar, divided
2 tsp culinary lavender flower buds, plus 1 additional tsp of culinary lavender flower buds - divided
2 tsp vanilla extract
1cup sour cream
¼ cup half-and half cream


This is what you need for the glaze:

4 tsp water
¾ cups powdered sugar
Additional dried culinary lavender buds (optional)
Additional almond slivers for decoration (optional, looks nice though!)
Additional lemon squeeze for the glaze (optional too, but the combination with the lavender is tasty!)

Grease a pound cake pan and sprinkle sugar inside to cover the walls of the pan. Turn upside down to discard the lose sugar which does not stick to the pan.Combine ½ cup of sugar, almonds, and 2 tsp of lavender buds in a food processor and finely grind.
Cream the butter in a large bowl, then add sugar and continue mixing until light and fluffy.
Add the almond and mix until combined. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition.
Add vanilla extract.

In a separate bowl, combine sour cream and half-and half cream.
Mix the flour, baking soda and salt and add to the large bowl with the butter, sugar, and almond-lavender mixture alternating with the sour cream and half-and half cream.
(This is as complicated as it gets)
Pour into prepared pan and bake at 350 F for 1 hour.
Do the toothpick test: If inserted near the center and it comes out clean – the pound cake is completely baked.

Cool the cake for 10 minutes before turning the cake pan upside down to release the cake. Cool the cake then on a cookie rack completely.

After the cake is completely cooled down prepare for the drizzle.
Combine the remaining lavender flower buds with the water and steep for 10 minutes. Strain and discard the lavender. Our culinary lavender is very deep in color and produces a deeper color liquid. However, if your lavender liquid is not as colorful you can add a little bit of food coloring (just use a toothpick to get a tiny amount out of the bottle).
In a different bowl combine the powdered sugar and enough of the infused lavender water to achieve the consistency of a glaze. The addition of a little lemon juice is optional too.
Drizzle the glaze over the completely cooled pound cake and garnish with additional lavender flower buds.

Bon appétit!

Summer

Happy First Day of Summer!