Jardin du Soleil Lavender Farm, Bath & Body Products

"Add the subtle scent of lavender to aromatic jasmine rice and you get a new side dish fit for company- and easy enough for quick weeknight meals.  Take your choice of mushrooms. Cremini and Shiitake are especially good. I like to prepare the pilaf in a rice cooker.  If you don't have one, use a covered 2-quart casserole dish and bake the rice at 350 F for 20 to 25 minutes."

Ingredients

1 tbls. dried Jardin du Soleil Certified Organic Culinary Lavender
2 tsp. mustard seeds
1/2 tsp. fennel seeds
2 tbls. extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 lb. mixed mushrooms, diced
1 cup uncooked jasmine rice
1/2 cup finely diced shallot
1/2 cup finely diced green onions
1/2 tsp. sea salt
1/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
2 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth

Combine the lavender, mustard seeds, and fennel seeds in the spice grinder.  Pulse until finely ground.

Warm oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the mushrooms and saute` for 7 minutes, or until golden and the liquid released my the mushrooms evaporates.  Add the rice, shallot, green onions, salt, pepper, and lavender mixture.

Transfer to the rice cooker and add the chicken broth.  Cook for 30 minutes, or until the rice is tender and the liquid has been absorbed.

This recipe is taken from page 136 of Sharon Shipley's The Lavender Cookbook,available here.

Interested in cooking with lavender?  Add Jardin du Soleil certified organic culinary lavender in your spice rack and start exploring the flavor of lavender in a wide variety of foods, ranging from desserts to roasted vegetables!  Check back to this blog weekly for added recipes. Use our Lavender Recipes or purchase "The Lavender Cookbook" by Sharon Shipley.

Simple ingredients full of flavor is what this salad has to offer! The rich goat cheese calms the flavors of basil and onion, while the baby greens and nectarine offer a bright refreshed flavor. Try it for your own lunch on a sunny spring afternoon, or multiply the recipe to serve the whole family at dinner. The dressing contains Jardin du Soleil's culinary lavender.

mmm... Scrumptious!

Ingredients (1 serving)
1 nectarine - pipped and sliced
a handful of baby lettuce leaves
a few young basil leaves
thin sliced red onion to taste
2 thin slices of goat's cheese

Dressing
2 tsp vinegar
1 tsp Salad Oil
a pinch of minced Jardin du Soleil Culinary Lavender
a pinch of sugar
chopped mint leaf to taste

Since the temperature has dropped a bit, this recipe for Rice Pudding with Jardin du Soleil Culinary Lavender should hit the spot!

Ingredients

½ cup rice

2 ½ cup whole milk

1 cup boiling water

2 tablespoons Jardin du Soleil Culinary Lavender

2/3 cup sugar

2 ½ tablespoons cornstarch

Instructions

Put milk, sugar and Jardin du Soleil Culinary Lavender in a small pot, bring to boiling point, and remove from heat immediately. Let the mixture steep for at least 30 minutes, longer depending on how strong you wish lavender flavor to be. In a separate pot, add rice to boiling water; cook on medium heat with the lid half closed for 15 minutes, or until water is absorbed by the rice.

In a small bowl, mix cornstarch together with a couple teaspoons of water and a bit of the hot milk mixture, to slightly increase the cornstarch temperature.  Then add the this to the steeping milk.  Transfer the infused milk through a strainer into the rice and cook for 30 minutes or so, until you reach the desired consistency.  Transfer the pudding into your serving dish and refrigerate, covered with plastic wrap, until serving.

Looking for something a bit richer? Try our Jardin du Soleil Lavender Crème Brulee! (It’s the 5^th recipe down.)