Lunch

A vegetable salad with mixed greens, chopped yellow bell pepper, tomatoes, cucumbers, Feta cheese and Wildtree's honey Dijon dressing and dipping sauce.

To drink... Yogi Raspberry passion perfect energy tea.

Lavendar Heart Cookies

I got this recipe from "The Great Big Cookie Book," by Hilaire Walden. I made them for my friend and former co-worker, Florence, when she came to my house for tea. They were beyond delicious! I will definitely be making them again... and again and again!

 Lavender Heart Cookies
Makes 16-18

Ingredients:
1/2 cup unsalted butter (I ended up having to add another Tablespoon or so to get the dough to stick together.)
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1&1/2 cups all purpose flour
2 Tablespoons fresh lavender florets or 1 Tablespoon dried culinary lavender, roughly chopped
2 Tablespoons superfine sugar for sprinkling (I used regular granulated sugar)

Method: Cream together the butter and sugar until fluffy. Stir in the flour and lavender and bring the mixture together in a soft ball. Cover and chill for 15 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface and stamp out heart cookies using a 2-inch heart-shaped cookie cutter. Place on heavy baking sheet and bake for about 10 minutes, until golden.

After removing from oven, sprinkle with sugar then leave the cookies standing for 5 minutes to set. Using a metal spatula, transfer carefully to wire rack. Cool completely. Can be stored in airtight container for up to one week.

   

Lemon Ginger Honey Tea (Immune support and cold assist)

We've already experienced our first colds of the season at the Harlow Homestead. I've made several rounds of this tea. I enjoy it, but it takes lots of encouragement to get the rest of the family to drink it. Adjust ingredients to desired strength/taste. You only need three ingredients. Fresh Ginger Root, Honey and Fresh Lemon.

Grate about 1 inch of the ginger root. (I keep one in the freezer.) A micro-planer works well for grating this.
Juice one lemon (I also use the micro-planer and add a little lemon zest.)
Honey to taste.

Boil water. Meanwhile, put the grated ginger, juice of lemon and honey into a thermos. Add boiling water and steep for about 20 minutes. Pour through strainer into cup. Enjoy (or according to my husband, tolerate.) The original recipe came from this link.

Lemon Lavendar Tea

Another summertime favorite

For a half-gallon of tea, brew 2 family-sized (or 6 regular) black tea bags in 16 oz of boiling water. I use Luzianne decaffeinated black tea.) Add a few sprigs if fresh lavender and a few sprigs of fresh lemon balm. Brew together for a total of 30 minutes or more. Pour over ice into pitcher. Add a fresh sliced lemon. Delish!

Iced Green Tea

I'm a big fan of green tea. Hot or cold, I have developed a taste for this stuff. I drink several cups a day. Instead of buying bottled green tea, I make my own. One box of 24 family-sized tea bags (I prefer Luzianne decaffeinated) makes 6 gallons equal to 48 16oz bottles of bought tea. Much cheaper and tastier in my opinion. I don't care for sweet drinks so it is always unsweetened for me, but if you must have it sweet, choose an all-natural sweetener and add just enough to make it tolerable for you. I use 2 tea bags for a half-gallon as the box suggests and brew for a good 30 minutes. If you use a lot of ice, use 3 tea bags. Add water and ice to fill up the pitcher and add a sliced fresh lemon or lime. Makes a refreshing summertime drink.