Cooking with Lavender: What you need to know & how to do it
Sunday, September 13th, 2009
Lavender flowers are mostly seen only in luxurious restaurant dessert menus, but if handled carefully, using culinary lavender can bring a deliciously sweet and elegant hue to you own cooking. Because of its perfumey and slightly musky scent, culinary lavender is commonly used in Herbes de Provence mixes, which alongside basil, thyme, savory and fennel adds a summery flavour.
Cooking with lavender pairs exceptionally well with lemon, so naturally brings out the flavour in many fish dishes.
A word of caution on cooking with lavender: lavender oil is considered mildly poisonous, and should not be added in place of any ingredients listed in these recipes. Also, if you are making the lavender for cooking purposes on your own, make sure the oils are completely dried out form the buds. Follow the instructions, and you shouldn’t have any problems at all. Symptoms of lavender poisoning include headaches, decreased appetite and constipation, but should clear within 24 hours. Also, if purchasing culinary lavender, you have nothing to worry about as these are buds that have been dried out before being sifted of impurities.