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Culinary Uses for Lavender


The information that follows is excerpted from a longer post:  The Ultimate Guide to Lavender.  For additional information about Lavender such as its cultivation, medicinal uses, or its uses through history, please click HERE to access the complete original post. Other individual sections are listed below:

Lavender for Breakfast

Lavender Fudge


I never used to think you could use lavender in cooking.  However, it is actually a very delicious herb.  I truly love using it in my recipes.  Some of these follow at the end of the article.  Click on the links to access them.

Lavender in a Measuring Spoon

When purchasing lavender for cooking, it is important that you seek out "culinary lavender".  Do not use lavender from a flower shop or garden center.  Buy from a grocery store, natural foods market, or health food store.  This guarantees that the lavender you are cooking with is truly safe to eat and has been raised without pesticides or other harsh chemicals. 

French Sweet Treats

Of course, the best way to ensure the safety of your lavender is to grow it yourself.  If you are going to grow lavender specifically for cooking, there are certain varieties that are more suited to this than others.  Lavandula dentata (French lavender) and Lavandula stoechas (Spanish lavender) are not really suited for this as the flowers they yield have a strong, bitter flavor that is more camphor-pine flavored than sweet.  

Lavandula "Stoechas"

Any of the Lavandula angustifolia varieties are much better for cooking than these.  The best angustifolia to use is that from the cultivar called "Munstead".  It is a smaller, dwarf variety that is fairly low-growing.  It only gets to be about one-and-a-half feet tall, but it has fatter, more open blooms than taller lavenders.  It has the sweetest fragrance of all the lavenders, which creates a much sweeter, fruity-er flavor for cooking.  
Lavandula angustifolia "Munstead"
Another cooking variety that is good to use is Lavandula angustifolia "Hidcote".  It, too, is a smaller variety, that grows to between 1 1/2 and 2 feet tall.  Its flower spikes are a very deep violet blue and its fragrance is more richly fruity than some of the other varieties which produce a spicy-sweet flavor.

Lavandula angustifolia "Hidcote"

Culinary lavender should have a sweet, floral flavor with lemon and citrus notes.  These flavor characteristics are what makes lavender an excellent pairing with other citrus flavors like lemon, or other sweet flavors like honey or ordinary sugar.  Lavender is wonderful in baking because of its natural sweetness.  See my recipes for Heart-Shaped Lavender Cookies, Lavender Baking Powder Biscuits, and Frosted Lavender Cookies for some ideas.  Recipes using lavender are all listed near the end of this post.

Lavender and Chocolate--Awesome flavor combination!!!

Lavender Sugar

You can also make lavender sugar by combining the flowers of 6 lavender stalks with 4 cups of granulated sugar in a coffee mill, food processor, or blender to create Lavender Sugar.  This should be stored in a Ziploc bag in the freezer until you are ready to use it.  Use the same way you would use regular sugar.  Use it in baking, to add flavor to teas and other drinks, or just to add some sweetness to your morning coffee.

Honey Lavender Roasted Chicken

Lavender is also great with meats, especially lamb and chicken.  See my recipe below for Lavender and Honey Roasted Chicken.  Lavender is also one of the "Herbes de Provence" used in many recipes.  This herbal mixture is usually made up of several pungent herbs in various quantities, like marjoram, oregano, thyme, rosemary, basil, sage and fennel.  This works great as a rub for most meats, pork, and poultry.  My favorite way to eat lavender is to use it in Lavender Rice.  This recipe is listed below, too. 

Lavender Tea

My first exposure to lavender in cooking was through a Victorian Tea Room in my home town.  They served afternoon teas that my mom and I would attend occasionally.  The first time we went, they served lavender cookies and lavender tea.  They even had lavender butter to put on biscuits!   It was a totally incredible experience.  The lavender was so rich and sweet that I think I fell in love with herbal baking right then and there!

Lavender Cupcakes

No matter how you use lavender in your cooking, just be aware that the herb's potency increases as it dries.  So if you are using dried lavender, use only about 1/3 as much as you would of fresh lavender.  Additionally, with lavender, a little goes a long way.  If there is too much of it, it will taste like you are eating soap or perfume and it will make the dish very bitter. 
Lavender Eclair

The leaves and stems are flavorful, too, and can be used in cooking, but the flowers give dishes that subtly sweet, citrus flavor you will appreciate most.  Whenever you use lavender, whether fresh or dried, be sure to grind it first using a coffee mill, food processor, or blender.  You can also pulverize it in a mortar and pestle, if you prefer.  This process breaks apart the flower buds and releases their essential oils which creates the proper flavor.  Besides, no one wants to bite into a cookie to get a mouthful of crunchy leaves or dried flowers!  It would be like eating potpourri!

Dried Lavender Flowers

Check out the recipes I have listed for you below--click on their links.  I'm sure you will find something that is right up your alley!  Please let me know how they work out for you!  Please leave any comments or questions you might have about using lavender in your kitchen below!
Peace and Love Always,








Lavender Madeleines


Sources:
Axe, Dr. Josh, MD. "7 Lavender Oil Benefits for Healing." Dr. Axe Food and Medicine. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Sept. 2016.

Bremness, Leslie. RD Home Handbook: Herbs. Pleasantville: Reader's Digest Association, 1990. Print.

Brown, Deni. The Herb Society of America Encyclopedia of Herbs and Their Uses. New York: Dorling Kindersley, 1995. Print.

Clark, Marnie. "Lavender Essential Oil Uses and Its Benefits for Cancer Patients." The Truth about Cancer. thetruthaboutcancer.com, n.d. Web. 18 Sept. 2016.

Clevely, Andi, and Katherine Richmond. The Complete Book of Herbs. New York: Smithmark, 1994. Print.

Cunnningham, Scott. Cunningham's Encyclopedia of Magical Herbs. St. Paul: Llewellyn Publications, 1992. Print.

Ehrlich, Steven D., NMD. "Lavender." University of Maryland Medical Center. University of Maryland Medical Center, 2 Jan. 2015. Web. 18 Sept. 2016. Published date is actually most recent review date. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.

Gips, Kathleen. Flora's Dictionary: The Victorian Language of Herbs and Flowers . Chagrin Falls: TM Publications, 1995. Print.

Kowalchik, Claire, and William H. Hylton, eds. Rodale's Illustrated Encyclopedia of Herbs . Emmaus: Rodale, 1987. Print.

Kruger, Anna. An Illustrated Guide to Herbs. Stamford: Longmeadow, 1993. Print.

"Lavender." Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, 21 Sept. 2015. Web. 18 Sept. 2016.

"Lavender." WebMD. Ed. Therapeutic Research Faculty. WebMD Therapeutic Research Faculty, 2009. Web. 18 Sept. 2016. Material for article provided by Natural Medicines Comprehensive Database Consumer Version.

Nordqvist, Joseph. "What Are the Benefits of Lavender?" Medical Today. Medical News Today, 9 Sept. 2014. Web. 18 Sept. 2016.

Shaudys, Phyllis. The Pleasure of Herbs. Pownal: Storey Communications, 1986. Print.

Shaudys, Phyllis V. Herbal Treasures. Pownal: Storey Communications, 1990. Print.
Photo Credits:  
Cooking with Lavender Background:  Photo Credit:  Kochbuch mit kochloffel by M-K Photo

Lavender for Breakfast:  Photo Credit:  Lavender, milk, eggs, cottage cheese, and flour before cooking by teleginatania

Lavender with Fudge Candy:  Photo Credit:  Fudge candies with Lavender by teelesswonder

Dried Lavender in a Measuring Spoon:   Photo credit: mindwhisperings via VisualHunt.com / CC BY-NC-ND

French Sweet Treats:  Photo Credit:  Calissons d'Aix-en-Provence. Traditional French Provence sweets. by annapustynnikova

Lavandula Stoechas:   Photo via Visual hunt


Lavender and Chocolate:  Photo Credit:  Homemade chocolate with lavender flowers by joanna wnuk

Lavender Sugar:   Photo credit: zenra via VisualHunt / CC BY-NC-SA

Lavender and Honey Roasted Chicken:   Photo credit: jypsygen via Visualhunt.com / CC BY-NC-ND

Lavender Tea:   Photo credit: aspros via Visual Hunt / CC BY-NC-ND

Lavender Cupcakes:   Photo credit: kathryn in stereo via Visual hunt / CC BY-SA

Lavender Eclair:  Photo Credit:  Delicate lavender eclair. by sriba3

Dried Lavender:   Photo credit: vanessa lollipop via VisualHunt / CC BY-SA

Lavender Madeleines:  Photo Credit:  Pumpkin cake madeleines by pronina_marina

Cooking with Lavender Background:  Photo Credit:  Kochbuch mit kochloffel by M-K Photo

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