Lavender, native to warm, Mediterranean-type climates, has household, medicinal, cosmetic and culinary uses. Lavender-infused sugar adds a gourmet touch to beverages, baked goods and ice cream. Making lavender sugar at home saves you money because you can produce three to four times more sugar than you can buy for a fraction of the cost. You can purchase some of the ingredients to make lavender sugar at regular supermarkets and others at gourmet, specialty or health food stores.
Instructions
1. Pour the white sugar into a mixing bowl. White sugar is best for this recipe because the molasses in natural and brown sugar overpowers the lavender flavor. Add the culinary lavender and blend the two ingredients together with a wooden spoon. Do not use aromatic lavender as it has not been cleaned and prepared for consumption.
2. Pour the lavender and sugar into the plastic bag and seal it. Shake the sugar mixture and seal the bag inside another resealable bag.
3. Store the lavender sugar in a cool, dry place for two weeks. Shake the bag to mix the sugar at the end of the first week. After two weeks, open the bag to taste the sugar. It's ready to use when it has a strong lavendar aroma and taste.
4. Sift the sugar to remove the lavender buds if you plan to use it as a beverage sweetener. However, do not discard the buds. Pour them back in the plastic bag, add additional sugar to replace what you use and reseal it. For cooking and baking, grind the lavender sugar, buds included, in a food processor or blender.
Tags: lavender sugar, Shake sugar, sugar into