5 Delightful Facts About Lavender, #GalentinesDayParty Ice Cream

NinjaBaker — Sat, 13 Feb 2016 07:55:36 +0000

What in the world is a Galentine’s Day Party? As inspired by the popular TV show, Parks and Recreation, the idea is to celebrate gal pals. Today’s hosts are Nancy of Gotta Get Baked and Courtney of Neighbor Food. Scroll down and you’ll see a sumptuous buffet of recipes designed for this sensational soirée. Luscious Honey Lavender Ice Cream is my offering.

Lavender was on the top of the shopping lists for the likes of Queen Elizabeth I and Cleopatra. The Queen of England relieved work stress and headaches by downing cups of lavender infused tea. In Egypt, Cleopatra dabbed lavender scented perfumes on her body before seducing both Julius Caesar and Mark Anthony. If lavender is good enough for the royals, I figure it’s perfect for the special attendees of this Galentine’s Day Party.

5 Delightful Facts About Lavender:
1. Real Men Wear Lavender
Roman soldiers battled wound infection by dabbing lavender balm onto their boo-boos.
(Forgive me. As a great-auntie, sometimes grownup words escape my mind.)
2. One Peace
(Not to be confused with the Japanese One Piece manga series…Although the pirates probably need a little lavender in their lives!)
Lavender calms raging storms of fevers and migraines. Lavender compresses in days past were popular for vanquishing fevers. Royals like Queen Elizabeth I infused the perennial flower into tea to crush headaches. (Today lavender oils do the trick. Click here or here for more details.)
3. Bug Off
Lavender oil carries antiseptic and anti-inflammatory elements. From ancient times, minor burns and bug bites were soothed with lavender oil.
4. Blue Magic
Do you believe in Old Wives’ tales? Sometimes there’s truth in traditions that are passed on. Think about garlic. Italian grandmothers used to send children to school with garlic garlands around their necks during cold/flu season…Well, grannies of the old country also decorated bedposts with lavender wreaths to ward off evil. Lavender was known as the potent blue magic that repelled dark spirits.
5.Jiro Secretly Dreams of Lavender Sushi…Or maybe not.
But you never know. Many culinary giants have discovered the delights of lavender in desserts and main dishes. Chef Ming Tsai sprinkles lavender on lamb. Crème brûlée is accented with lavender in a luscious Rocco DiSpirito recipe. Martha Stewart stirs up lavender lemonade.

Inspired by the movie, It’s Complicated, I dreamed of mastering lavender ice cream. (Nuanced and subtle like sprinkles of lavender, Meryl Streep enchants Alec Baldwin with a bow of ice cream!)…I’ve played with various recipes and do believe the recipe below deserves a 5 star rating. Be prepared: You may be the hit of your Galantine’s Day Party!

Lavender Ice Cream

Lavender calms the nerves…Ice cream infused with lavender and honey is the perfect dessert for a DYI spa day.

This recipe is adapted from Epicurious.com.

The lavender oil is not necessary to create this divine dessert. However, if interested in obtaining lavender oil, click here.

Ingredients:

2 cups heavy cream
1 cup half-and-half
2/3 cup honey
2 tablespoons dried edible lavender flowers
(Penzeys carries this perennial)
2 (maximum 3) drops of lavender oil
Sprinkles of lilac candy coloring
2 large eggs
Pinch of salt

Directions:

Stirring often, bring the cream, half-and-half, honey, dried lavender, drops of lilac candy coloring and lavender oil to a boil. Keep a medium flame / heat under the saucepan.
Remove the pan from the stove. Cover with a lid and steep for 30 minutes.
Pour the mixture through a sieve into a bowl. Toss the lavender remnants.
Into a clean saucepan, heat the strained mixture over medium heat. Turn off the heat while you whisk together the eggs and salt in a large clean bowl.
Next, briskly stir in 1 cup of the hot mixture. Pour the contents of the large bowl into the saucepan. Turn on a moderate-low flame under the saucepan. Keep whisking for about 5 minutes or until a candy thermometer registers 170° to 175° (Another trick: Stir with a wooden spoon. Turn off the heat once the mixture is thick enough to coat the back of the spoon.)
Once again, strain the contents of the saucepan through a sieve into a bowl. Cover the mixture with plastic. Freeze overnight.
Take the bowl out of the freezer about 20 minutes before churning per the instructions of your ice cream maker.
Transfer the lovely lavender ice cream to a Tupperware (or similar) bowl and store in the freezer….Unless family and friends dive in first!

Here are a few more recipes which may make you the star of your Galantine's Day Party.

Caramel Cheesecake from That Skinny Chick Can Bake
Hula Pie from Heather’s Dish
Red Velvet Donuts from Blahnik Baker
Strawberry Chocolate Chip Pancakes from NeighborFood
Pecan Sticky Buns from The Cooking Actress
Gin Lime Coconut Truffles from Food Lust People Love
Red Velvet Chocolate Chip Cookies from Wallflour Girl
Lavender Ice Cream from NinjaBaker
Three Ingredient Valentine’s Day M&M Fudge from Big Bear’s Wife
Smores Waffle Sticks from A Cookie Named Desire
Cherry Chocolate Chip Cheesecake from Cookie Dough and Oven Mitt
Chocolate Frosted Fudgy Brownies with Strawberries from Pineapple and Coconut
Nutella Layer Cake from gotta get baked

Wishing you gal pals with whom you can share giggles and lavender ice cream!

The Ninja Baker

The Ninja Baker has guest blogged and contributed recipes to numerous food sites. These additional recipes can be found here.

Tags:

#lavender #Icecream #lavenderoil #lavenderfacts #honey

The Ninja Baker - #lavender #Icecream #lavenderoil #lavenderfacts #honey

5 Delightful Facts About Lavender, #GalentinesDayParty Ice Cream