Caffienated Goodness

Sorry for the lack of posts lately. It’s been so hard to get my butt over to Starbucks or Barnes and Noble for the wi-fi for my computer. Poor lonely little laptop sitting on my bookshelf with wonderous photos just waiting to be uploaded and posted!

*sigh*

Well this morning I decided to make my own coffee. I have some of Target’s house blend in my pantry and I like to add odd ingredients to it. This morning’s concoction was 2 tablespoons of coffee grounds, a pinch of lavender buds and a light sprinkling of cinnamon brewed in 5 cups of ice cold water. I poured it over some honey to sweeten it, ooooooh was it yummy!

So experiment with your coffee! You may be surprised!

Lavender Carrot Biscotti… sort of…

The Italians certainly have it right: cookies for breakfast!

I am absolutely head over heels for biscotti. Every year for Christmas, a really close family friend makes her famous Cappucino Biscotti for my dad and I. We usually take turns hiding the bag so we can have the last delicious morsel.

Well it’s not really Christmas, but I’m in the mood for some crunchy Italian treats. With the temperatures rising, I wanted to bake something a bit lighter tasting than the rich flavors of cocoa and coffee. I opted for a mix of carrot with lavender and a hint of ginger.

Well, the result was a little more scone-like, but without the butter! Next time perhaps I’ll try adding in an egg white or using only egg whites to keep it less moist. The flavor is still awfully delicious, though!

Lavender Carrot Biscotti
2 cups all purpose flour
1/4 cup millet flour
1/3 cup walnut pieces
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground ginger
Pinch of nutmeg
2 eggs
1 teaspoon almond extract
2 tablespoons very hot water
1/2 teaspoon lavender buds
2 medium carrots, roughly grated

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Oil a cookie sheet liberally with canola oil and set aside. Place the lavender buds in the hot water and allow to soak for at least 10 minutes. In a large bowl, combine flours, walnuts, baking powder, salt, ginger and nutmeg. In mixer bowl using paddle attachment, add carrot, lavender mixture, extract and egg. Beat until well combined. Add flour and mix well. Switch to kneading hook and knead dough for about 2 minutes, or until the dough pulls away from sides of the bowl. Shape into a log on the cookie sheet. For smaller cookies, and probably crisper results, shape into 2 logs. Bake 40 minutes. Remove from oven and cool for 10 minutes. Slice on a slight diagonal and place flat on cookie sheet. Bake for 10 minutes or until desired crispness is achieved. Cool completely before storing.

Lemon Lavender Cookies

So last night I decided it was time lavender up a new batch of cookies! Flipping through some old recipes I copied from newspaper articles, I discovered a lemon lavender cookie recipe. Now this one called for powdered sugar and chilling and rolling.. just not really my thing for 8:00 at night. Plus I have yet to buy myself a rolling pin. I switched out some ingredients and added some white chocolate to create a VERY sweet cookie. I adore the texture and the flavor, but next time I think I’ll cut down on the sugar a bit and add some more flour. For those of you with a high tolerance for sweets.. ENJOY!

Lemon Lavender Cookies
3 1/3 tablespoons butter, softened
2 tablespoons plain yogurt
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon lemon zest plus a squeeze of lemon juice
3/4 cup flour (I used brown rice flour)
1/2 teaspoon lavender buds
1 square white baking chocolate chopped up (or 1/4 cup white chocolate chips)

Preheat oven to 350. Beat butter, yogurt, and sugar together. Add in lemon zest, flour, and lavender. Mix well and add in white chocolate. Drop by tablespoons 2 inches apart onto ungreased cookie sheet. Press down with fork in that criss-crossy peanut butter cookie pattern. Bake about 15 minutes and cool completely

Confessions of a Bake-aholic

Last night we had a benefit out at Gunther’s in Plainfield for my cousins, Kylie and Taylor, and in memory of my uncle, Jeff. Out late and partying hard with my family left little time for sleep. So there’s no reason I should want to bake anything tonight.. says the bake-aholic..

I discovered this recipe a few days ago over at Tartlette. I figured after the amount of sugar I injested over the past few days, this recipe would be perfect to get me back on track. They’re very tasty and very filling with tons of fiber! I plan to try them warmed up with some milk poured over the top. Yum!

Lavender Oatmeal Bars
1/4 cup whole wheat flour
1/4 cup millet flour
3/4 cup oats
1/3 cup chopped walnuts
1/8 cup flax seed
1 teaspoon lavender
1 egg
1/4 cup plain yogurt
1 teaspoon agave nectar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350. In a large bowl, mix flours, oats, walnuts, flax seed, and lavender. In a separate bowl, whisk egg, yogurt, agave nectar, and vanilla extract. Add the egg mixture to flour mixture and combine well. Spread onto a greased cookie sheet. Bake 8-10 minutes. Remove, let cool, and cut into sections with pizza cutter. Enjoy!!

Lavender Butterscotch Blondies

Definitely not the prettiest thing I’ve ever made.. but a superbly sweet treat for that sweet tooth! This is another recipe I whipped up to add Kyle’s monthly care package! I got this recipe from another gluten free blogger who adapted the recipe from the Joy of Cooking. As you know, I can’t leave any recipe well enough alone so I added some lavender to the mix. I chose lavender because I wanted Kyle to try something truly unique. This recipe is very gooey and at first I was afraid that I wouldn’t be able to send my creation in the mail. I threw the pan in the refrigerator overnight to firm the blondies up. This worked like a charm and I was able to add them to the box!

Lavender Butterscotch Blondies
3 tablespoons butter
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup rice flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon lavender

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Melt butter in microwave and stir in brown sugar until completely moistened. Let cool slightly, then stir in remaining ingredients. Pour into a well greased 8×8 pan and bake 15 to 20 minutes. Cool and cut into squares.

(She suggests adding 1/2 teaspoon xantham gum if you want to double the recipe, but I refuse to cook with the stuff, as I don’t like the sound of it. I know, strange, but that’s me!)