LAVENDER SHORTBREAD COOKIES
3 cups unsalted butter, softened
2 cups granulated sugar
6 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 T. vanilla extract
1 teaspoon lemon extract
1 T. dried lavender buds
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Sift flour and salt.  Add to butter mixture and stir until well incorporated.  Add vanilla extract, lemon extract, and lavender buds.  Form dough into logs roll in lavender colored sugar and wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate until firm. Slice dough into 1/2 thick slices.  Lay cookie slices on parchment lined baking sheet.  Bake for 10-15 minutes or until edges are slightly golden.

LAVENDER BERRY BUTTER SPREAD
1/2 cup sweet unsalted butter softend
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup honey
1/2 cup fresh berries
1 teaspoon dried lavender
Blend the first four items in a food blender, then fold in lavender. Chill.


PURPLE PASSION LAVENDER LEMONADE
Cover 1/4 cup lavender flowers with 1 cup boiling water and let steep 10 minutes. Strain.
Combine lavender infusion with 1-12 oz. can frozen lemonade concentrate and 1 cup grape juice. Add 1 quart water. Chill. To make: fill glass 1/2 full of lavender lemonade over ice, then top up with lemon-lime soda or champagne. Add a lavender sprig.

LAVENDER SALAD DRESSING
6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon lime juice
1 clove garlic, minced
1 teaspoon grain mustard
2 tablespoons honey
1 teaspoon dried lavender blossoms
Blend all ingredients together in a blender. Serve on spinach salad arugula leaves with pine nuts and blue cheese.

LAVENDER LINEN STARCH
Dissolve 1 tablespoon cornstarch in 1 pint cold water. Add 6 drops of lavender essential oil. Place in a spray bottle. Shake before using.
Fresh pressed linens, nicely starched, and lavender fragrance wafting in the air.


Lavender Herbal Jelly
Most of us have tasted mint jelly not realizing that it is a herbal jelly. Mint is just one option from the rainbow of herb jellies to explore for their variety of tastes and colors too! I love offering a taste of my first favorite, rosemary jelly, made with an orange juice base. Rose petal jelly creates a sparkling rose color (substitute petals from 12 roses and 2 sprigs of rose scented geraniums instead of the lavender in the recipe below). Or how about a raspberry colored clove dianthus jelly?...pale honey colored lemon verbena...spicy deep purple colored opal basil...soft mauve violet jelly! These visual and tasty delights are easy to make too! If you can make a pot of herb tea you can make herbal jellies.. From a basic herb infusion you add sugar,  pectin and a dash of acid like lemon juice or white wine vinegar to help draw the colors. Food coloring is optional but not necessary.

1 1/2 cups fresh lavender flowers
3 1/4 cups water
1 box powdered 'certo'
4 cups white sugar
1 tbsp white wine vinegar
To begin, sterilize 5 x 1c jelly jars, rings and seals, and find a medium to large sized pot.
Bring the water to a boil in a pot, place in the lavender, and cover with a lid.
Lower heat to simmer for 5 min, then remove from heat. Don't peek! Steep for at least 20 mins or preferably overnight.
Strain and measure 3 cups of the lavender brew and place in deep jelly making pot.
Whisk in pectin crystals and vinegar, bring to a boil, and whisk in sugar.
Keep pot boiling until it is at a rolling boil that can't be stirred down (about 1 min.)
Remove from heat, and let sit for 5 min. Skim the top if necessary.
Quickly bottle and seal before it jellifies. Let the jelly age 1 month for best results.
Hint: Don't give them all away!
Recipe from Herbal Adventures by Lynda Dowling

Lavender Lemonade
1 cup sugar
1 tablespoon dried lavender blooms stripped from stems
1 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice, strained
Ice cubes
Lavender sprigs for garnish
Combine sugar with 2 1/2 cups water in a medium pan. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring to dissolve the sugar.
Add the lavender blooms to the sugar water, cover, and remove from heat. Let stand at least 20 minutes (and up to several hours).
Strain mixture and discard lavender. Pour infusion into a glass pitcher. Add lemon juice and another 2 1/2 cups water. Stir well and watch lemonade change color.
Pour into tall glasses half-filled with ice or refrigerate until ready to use.
Lynda Dowling's Lavender Lemonade

Lavender Bath Bomb
1 cup baking soda
1/3 cup citric acid
1/4 tsp borax
witch hazel in a fine mist sprayer
6 drops lavender essential oil
1/2 tsp dried, powered lavender flowers
spray tin of cooking oil e.g.. Pam
small Jell-O or individual soap making molds, even two piece plastic eater eggs will work or even used muffin tins.

In a large mixing bowl, mix baking soda and borax plus powdered herbs or flowers, sift 2-3 times.
Sprits with witch hazel ; mix well, sprits and stir until mix is consistency of wet sand and will retain it's shape if squeezed in a clenched hand.
Add citric acid and essential oil (usually available in health food stores). Mix well again.
Spray or wipe mold lightly with cooking oil. Pack firmly with your mix.
Let set five minutes then gently turn over and tap on top of paper towel surface.
Let air dry 24 hours before wrapping or packaging, store moisture free.

Easy Lavender Body Powder
2/3 cup arrowroot powder
2/3 cup corn starch
6 tbsp. white clay
3 tbsp. dried lavender
Grind whole Lavender flowers in a clean coffee grinder to desired fineness. Use a glass bowl, mix arrowroot powder, cornstarch and Lavender. Optional to add a few drops of essential oil to boost scent. Stir.
Store in a glass sealed container. Nice as a gift in a shaker bottle with holes in the top.


Easy Lavender Lemonade
1 Quart Lemonade
1 Tablespoon Dried lavender
1 Cup Boiling Water
Bring water to a boil, remove from heat, stir in the lavender, steep 20 minutes, strain, add lavender water to lemonade and serve chilled.

Lavender Scones
2 cups flour
1 Tablespoon baking powder
4 Tablespoon butter
1/4 Cup sugar
2 Teaspoon fresh lavender florets or 1 Teaspoon dried culinary lavender roughly chopped
About 2/3 Cup milk
Heat oven to 425 degrees. Sift together the flour and baking powder. Rub the butter into the dry ingredients until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Stir in the sugar and lavender florets, reserving a pinch of lavender to sprinkle on the top of the scones before baking them.
Add enough milk to make a soft, sticky dough. Bind the mixture together and then turn the dough out onto a well-floured work surface. Shape the dough into a circle, gently patting the top to give a 1inch depth. Using a floured cutter. Stamp out 12 scones. Place on a baking sheet.
Brush the tops with a little milk and sprinkle with the reserved lavender. Bake for 10-12 minutes until golden. Serve warm, with plum jam and clotted cream.

LAVENDER PUNCH
1 cup water
1 (3 inch) cinnamon stick
1/2 tsp whole coves
3 TBS fresh lavender flowers OR
1 TBS dried lavender
1 (6 oz.) can frozen limeade
concentrate
2 cups 100% Concord purple grape juice
1 lime, sliced
1 liter bottle seltzer or
ginger ale, chilled
In covered 1 quart saucepan, heat
water, cinnamon, and cloves to
boiling.
Simmer over low heat 5 minutes;
remove from heat.
Add lavender flowers.
Cover and let stand 10 minutes to
steep.
Strain the brew into a bowl and
discard the particles.
Stir frozen limeade concentrate into
the brew until melted and add grape
juice.
Cover and refrigerate.
Just before serving, pour into large
pitcher.
Add lime slices and ice.
Fill pitcher with seltzer and serve
immediately.

Lavender Ointment
4 tablespoons olive oil
3 to 4 tablespoons beeswax
3 tablespoons cocoa butter
1 vitamin e capusal
15 drops lavender oil
Combine the olive oil, beeswax, cocoa butter and and heat in the top of a double boiler. Remove from the heat. Add the vitamin e, lavender oil and beat well. Pour into little jars and allow the mixture to cool before covering.


FURNITURE POLISH
8 oz. beeswax 2 oz. grated soap ½ teas. lemon 1 teas. lavender essential oil. 2 ½ cups turpentine (flammable)
2 ½ cups water Melt the beeswax in double boiler. Take off the heat & add turpentine. It just needs to be at room temp. Put this mixture aside. In another pot boil water & melt soap in it. Let cool until just warm. Add slowly to the beeswax and turpentine mixture. It's kind of a trickle, stir all the time thing. Blend in your EO's and pack into tins.

Lavender Wine Jelly
1/4 Cup dried Lavender Leaves
2 1/2 Cup Boiling Water
4 1/2 Cup Sugar
1/4 Cup White Wine
A few drops of purple food color.
1/2 Bottle Liquid Pectin

Sterilize jars - keep them hot. If using glasses, prepare paraffin. If using jars, prepare lids as manufacturer directs.
Pour boiling water over lavender and let steep for 15 minutes. Strain and measure 2 cups of this herb tea into saucepan. Stir in sugar, wine and coloring. Heat to a full rolling boil, stirring constantly. Pour in pectin and return to a boil. Boil hard for 1 minute stirring constantly. Remove from heat and skim off foam.
Ladle through funnel into hot jars or glasses to 1/2 inch of tops. Wipe tops with a sterile cloth. Seal glasses with 1/8 inch layer of paraffin. If using jars, screw on tops.


LAVENDER MINT TEA PUNCH
6 teaspoons dried mint
6 cups boiling water
1 tablespoon dried lavender blossoms
1 liter ginger ale
1 cup purple grape juice
ice cubes with fresh mint leaf frozen in each
Brew the mint in the water in a teapot for ten minutes. Add the lavender blossoms to the pot. Allow tea to cool. Strain the tea and add the ginger ale, grape juice and ice cubes. If serving in a punch bowl, float lavender buds and mint sprigs on top.



Creamy Lavender Vinaigrette
3/4 cup sour cream
1/3 cup rice wine vinegar
1/3 cup honey
1/3 cup olive oil or grapeseed oil
1 tsp lime or lemon juice
1 tsp Herbs de Provence
1 1/2 tsp dried culinary lavender (ground to a fine powder in a coffee mill)
Combine all ingrediants in a pint jar and shake well. Pour it on salad greens or vegetables. Keeps for several days in the refrigerator and gets better as it "tishes."