Wednesday

Lavender Week with the Novel Bakers



There are hundreds of delicious, savory recipes using culinary 
lavender which tempted me this week ~

But because they are at their peak now
I gravitated towards recipes using berries . . .

such as this one, which I slightly adapted from one of the
Trader Joe's cookbooks.






These are very easy to make; the method is to roll puff pastry 
out with a rolling pin (the work surface and the top of the raw pastry is 
sprinkled generously with Turbinado sugar prior to rolling.)






The pastry is cut into squares, (or whatever shape you like) and
baked off in a hot oven.   After cooling on a rack the squares are
 sliced in half horizontally. 

You can use a variety of fillings ~ pudding, whipped cream,
lemon curd, mascarpone, etc.  I used a creamy plain yogurt, blended 
with a little raspberry jam and lavender honey to sweeten the mix.



Arrange berries, or any fruit that you like on the 
filling, then top with the remaining puff pastry half
and enjoy!

So good!


~*~*~*~*~*~


And, as I mentioned, MORE berries . . .





This recipe is inspired from one I found on the internet
and served at a lavender farm in the UK.

It is called a fruit cup but I think we, on this side of
the pond, would consider it a really refreshing drink with a lot of
fruit in it. :)





No matter the name it is really delicious,
not too sweet and doesn't contain much of 
an alcohol kick. The strawberries from the garden
are slowing in production now, but I found just
enough to make the recipe. 

I believe other fruit would work equally well (I'm thinking another
kind of berry, sliced peaches, nectarines, plums,
or pitted cherries.)





I would describe it as a twist on Sangria ~ delightful!
I serve it with a spoon to get every piece of fruit ~
a straw would make it easier to sip the liquid, too.



 
(Please note: I'm not endorsing any particular brand of ginger ale --
 I attempted to block the logo, but it looked like a train wreck.
And I love my good neighbors to the north in Canada!)


These are the ingredients: 

Fresh orange juice, lemon juice, ginger ale and a splash of dry vermouth.
Lots of sliced strawberries. Muddled lavender.
For garnish: lemon balm (or lemon verbena) and a stem or two of 
lavender. Serve well chilled!





I'll have the recipes and links to them up on
Friday.




Thank you for coming by for a visit ~
I appreciate your comments if you care to leave one!







I know you'll enjoy stopping by
each of the Novel Bakers blogs to see their
magical creations today ~

(To visit click on the links below.)
a quiet life blog

9 comments:

  1. Those photos are gorgeous! And, I think it might be easy enough for even me to do it!

    ReplyDelete
  2. stunning light and composition in your photos. Lavender week is full of magic and dreamy experiences!
    Jenna

    ReplyDelete
  3. So pretty Mary..in fact perfectly pretty..When I was a youg girl..a bought treat was "carré feuilleté"..exactly this but commercially made and all bad for you things..
    Looks like you have created the magic with fresh fruits..your berries and lavender are pristine!
    I have to make your carrés soon.
    I love the bubbles on the berries in the drink.
    Bonne Journée Mary~

    ReplyDelete
  4. Thank you so much Pam, Jenna and Monique.
    "carré feuilleté" ~ what a pretty name, sounds way better than "pillow puffs"!

    Your comments make my day, I'm sending each of you a big hug.xo

    ReplyDelete
  5. Oh dear ~ Jain a copy of your message remains in my email box, but the original does not appear here.

    Let me fix that:

    "a quiet life has left a new comment on your post "Lavender Week with the Novel Bakers":

    what a drop dead gorgeous start to the day... so pretty, feminine and delicate looking... this godzilla could power down a dozen ;-)

    oh what a gorgeous beverage/fruit bowl! your pictures are almost translucent, there is just an ethereal color quality i adore. everything looks so pretty and fresh, i am craving more lavender as i type. this week has been so enjoyable to see the many ways we can adapt to living with lavender daily~ "


    Thank you for the sweet comments, I know you mentioned that lavender is your new Salt & Pepper, and I think this week has taught me to open my mind and use it more often. I think in many instances it would make a great stand-in for rosemary.

    Thank you for hosting us! I'll say it again ~ Viva Lavender!!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Oh so berryilicious...is that a word? The lure of lavender continues as you elevate food to art with your styling and photography! What could be better than Puff Pillows filled with your yogurt, jam & lavender honey?! I can tell your berries are bursting with fresh-from-garden flavor~ Viva Lavender indeed!

    ReplyDelete
  7. I attended an event at our local lavender farm on Sunday where launder was the star of the show in every dish.

    ReplyDelete
  8. I gasped outloud as the post unfolded, and the gorgeous photos were revealed. The depth and complexity of the pastry just leaped out--and the berries. Beauty, thou are Once Upon a Plate.

    I'm going to miss Lavender Week, miss cooking with the girls. Now, the weather has turned glorious--cool, not too breezy, blazing slight. I hope it holds for our next NB adventure (but it prolly won't.) xx

    ReplyDelete

Thank you for your comments, friends ~ they make my day!

A Sampling of my food . . .

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