Friday, July 10, 2015

Summer Bouquets and Lavender Shortbread: Week 3 of LoCoFlo’s Flower CSA

July is here! We are in the thick of summer and the flowers are loving the heat!

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This week’s bouquet is filled with:

Since this is our first week of the season for Monarda- we thought we’d tell you a little of what we learned about it.

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Mondarda is also referred to as bee balm, horsemint, oswego tea, and bergamot. You can make it into a tea (it has a mildly citrus taste) as well as dry it and use it for potpourri.  Be sure to pull a stem out of your arrangement to check out the square stems!

IMG_9015Our friends at Butterbee Farm grew A LOT of  lavender this year so we picked some out at the farm last week and used it for some sweet tasting lavender shortbread cookies. We thought we’d share the recipe with you since they were so good!

Happy July!

INGREDIENTS:

  • 1 1/2 cups butter, softened
  • 2/3 cup white sugar
  • 1/4 cup sifted confectioners' sugar
  • 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh (local)
  • lavender
  • 1 tablespoon chopped fresh (local) mint leaves
  • 1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
  • 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 cup cornstarch
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt

DIRECTIONS:

  • In a medium bowl, cream together the butter, white sugar and confectioners' sugar until light and fluffy. Mix in the lavender, mint and lemon zest. Combine the flour, cornstarch and salt; mix into the batter until well blended. Divide dough into two balls, wrap in plastic wrap and flatten to about 1inch thick. Refrigerate until firm, about 1hour.
  • Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough out to 1/4 inch thickness. Cut into shapes with cookie cutters. Cookie stamps will work well on these too. Place on cookie sheets.
  • Bake for 18 to 20 minutes in the preheated oven, just until cookies begin to brown at the edges. Cool for a few minutes on the baking sheets then transfer to wire racks to cool completely.