Lavender for Lushes

Go into any LA bar right now and you’ll find cocktails that are like a garden in a glass.  Take a sip, and you just might think you’re laying in a field of summer flowers with the sun shining on you.   A friend of mine had brought me a few bunches of lavender, and because I was leaving soon for a quick trip, I didn’t want to let it all go to waste.   While I do wear lavender oil in my hair (a Lush Chef beauty tip), I wasn’t about to start pressing oil and whipping up a hair product on a Wednesday night.  But prepping ingredients for lavender-infused cocktails...well, that I know how to do!

Lavender sugar is a fancy way to dress up and give an elegant decor and flavor to cookies and cakes.  It also makes a sweet finish to rim a cocktail glass with.  Scented sugars also make fantastic and inexpensive little gifts.  The Lush Chef likes to put them in little mason jars with pretty ribbons. 

Lavender Sugar – makes 1-1 ½ cups

Ingredients:

• 1-1 ½ cups sugar
• 8-10 lavender blossoms 

- Fill a glass jar with the sugar and layer in the lavender blossoms.

- Be sure to use lavender meant for culinary use.  I recommend buying the organic stuff straight from the farmers market.

- Shake the jar every few days, and by the end of 2 weeks, you'll have beautifully scented & flavored lavender sugar.

- Be sure to run the sugar through a sieve to get all of the blossoms out before using.

For some subtly sweet and herbal cocktails, I love using lavender simple syrup.  It's a surprising addition for champagne cocktails, makes an excellent boozy lavender lemonade, or gives a French twist to a mojito.  This also makes an excellent Lush Chef gift. 

Lavender Simple Syrup – makes 2 cups

Ingredients:

• 1 cup water
• 3 Tbs fresh or dried lavender blossoms
• 2 cups sugar

- Heat water and lavender blossoms to a boil.

- Add sugar and stir until completely dissolved.

- Remove from heat, and refrigerate for 3 days so the lavender really gets a chance to infuse the syrup.

- Strain the syrup to remove the blossoms and bottle it up!