Lavender and Pumpkins make a beautiful Thanksgiving table decoration | | |
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Happy November Friends!
The holidays are officially upon us! And if you're anything like me, these holidays are especially meaningful since we can safely gather with friends and family once again. To make your Thanksgiving dinner extra special, I've included a few traditional Thanksgiving recipes, but with a lavender twist! I hope you enjoy them!
If you're looking to start your holiday shopping early, our little shop in downtown Newberg and our online store both have lots of unique, hand-crafted lavender gifts for the lavender lovers in your life. And in this month of giving thanks, I am especially thankful for you and your continued support and encouragement of our small farm. It means the world to us! So please use the coupon code "Thankful" for any online shop purchases. Or for in-shop purchases, please use this coupon.
Have a wonderful Thanksgiving!
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Lavender Recipes for the Holidays | |
Herbes de Provence Roast Turkey
Ingredients:
- 1 fresh or thawed frozen turkey, about 16 lb.
- 1 yellow onion, quartered
- 2 celery stalks, cut into 2-inch lengths
- 3 or 4 fresh flat-leaf parsley sprigs
- 2 to 3 Tbs. herbes de Provence
- Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
- 4 to 6 Tbs. (1/2 to 3/4 stick) unsalted butter, melted
Directions:
1.Let the turkey stand at room temperature for 1 hour. Do not leave the turkey at room temperature longer than 1 hour.
2.Position a rack in the lower third of an oven and preheat to 425°F.
3.Remove the giblets and neck from the turkey and reserve for making gravy, if desired. Rinse the turkey inside and out with cold water and pat dry with paper towels. Place the onion, celery, parsley and 1 Tbs. of the herbes de Provence in the body cavity, and season with salt and pepper. If desired, truss the turkey with kitchen twine. Brush the turkey with some of the melted butter. Sprinkle with the remaining herbes de Provence and season with salt and pepper.
4.Place the turkey, breast side down, on a buttered roasting rack in a large roasting pan. Roast for 30 minutes, basting with some of the remaining butter after 15 minutes. Using 2 pairs of tongs or heat-resistant kitchen gloves or mitts, turn the turkey breast side up and reduce the oven temperature to 325°F. Continue roasting, basting with the remaining butter and pan juices every 15 to 20 minutes, until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the breast, away from the bone, registers 165°F, and into the thigh, 175°F. Total roasting time should be 3 to 3 3/4 hours.
5.Transfer the turkey to a warmed platter, cover loosely with aluminum foil and let rest for about 20 minutes before carving. Serves 12.
Recipe by Williams-Sonoma Kitchen.
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Lavender Pumpkin Pie
Preheat oven to 400
Step 1: Make candied pecans (to go around rim of pie)
Ingredients
- 1 ¾ c water
- 1 ½ c sugar
- 2 Tb culinary lavender
- 1 c pecans
Bring lavender and water to a boil. Stir in sugar until completely disolved and boil for about 15 min. To make a lavender simple syrup. Toss pecans in about ¼ c of simple syrup. Lay pecans out on a cookie sheet and roast at 400 degrees for 6-8 min, carefully monitoring to make sure they aren’t overcooked. Set aside.
Step 2: Make the pie filling
Ingredients
- 15 oz Pumpkin Puree
- 2 eggs
- ½ c. Brown sugar
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ tsp ground ginger
- ¼ tsp ground cloves
- ¾ c sweetened condensed milk
- 2 tsp culinary lavender
- 1 TB dark rum
- 9" pie shell
Directions:
1.Beat the eggs, and then add the pumpkin and condensed milk. Mix well.
2.Add sugar and spices. Mix well and then pour into 9” pie shell.
3.Arrange pecans around the rim of the pie crust.
4.Bake pie for 15 min at 400 and then reduce temperature to 350 and bake for 50 more minutes. To test pie for doneness, insert knife and if it comes out clean it’s done.
(adapted from Lavender Wind Farm)
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Lavender Chamomile Latte
Ingredients
• 16 ounces milk of your choice
• 1 tablespoon dried chamomile buds or two chamomile tea bags
• 2 teaspoons dried culinary lavender
• 1-2 teaspoons honey
Instructions
1. Heat milk in a small pan until very hot, being careful not to let it boil.
2. Add the chamomile and lavender to the hot milk. Let it steep for 5-10 minutes, then strain the mixture into a mug. Sweeten with raw honey.
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What is Lavender Hydrosol? | |
The hydrosol is the water below the layer of oil. | | |
Hydrosol is created during the steam distillation process used to extract essential oils. As the water below the plant chamber boils, steam is created and makes its way through the plant material, grabbing the oil of the plant, and carrying it through a condenser where the steam is cooled and condenses back into water and now, oil. The oil flows out of the condenser with the water and separates in the vertical column that collects it. This water by-product is hydrosol and contains “microscopic droplets of essential oils.” In other words, during the distillation process, the lavender buds infuse the hydrosol with the same therapeutic properties found in the oil, but in a milder, diluted form. Hydrosols have a scent similar to their essential oil, but are softer and more subtle. Our lavender hydrosol comes from several different lavender varieties that we grow organically and distill at the farm. And it's 100% pure hydrosol -- nothing added.
What’s it good for?
Linen spray
Room freshener
Skin toner
Anti-inflammatory
Great addition to baths for children
Nighttime sleep ritual for children
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Holiday Gift Idea:
Aromatherapy and Relaxation!
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The holidays can be a stressful time -- so this is the perfect time for the gift of relaxation! Eye pillows, neck wraps and sleep pillows (all made from beautiful imported linen) are available online and at our downtown Newberg shop! We also have other wonderful lavender gifts -- like gift boxes, gift bags, bath bombs, candles, and more! And these are all great for Hostess Gifts as well! Give the gift of "Ahhhh..." | |
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When we moved to Escondido 25 years ago, our house came with a dining room table — a giant, heavy, slightly beat-up dining room table. The owners were moving to Hawaii and didn’t want to lug the table with them across the ocean, so they left it for us. Now, 25 years later, that giant, much more beat-up table sits in our dining room in Oregon.
Sometimes I wonder why I haven’t gotten a new one. This one is kind of a wreck. I know that farmhouse rustic is in, but this table goes just a bit beyond that. I've tried to make it look presentable, but I can’t seem to clean off the red and white paint marks that were added when Lauren made Christmas ornaments one year. And I’ve tried to chip away at the spots that look like food but are actually glue from the glue gun that Noah used when he was working on his robot -- but when I chip away at it, the varnish comes off too. And then there’s a gouge at one end where Joshua was working on some project with Jesse that involved an axe. And the varnish in the grooves at the edges of the table is pretty much gone from when Mark used a butter knife to get the food particles out. Also, one of the legs has teeth marks from when Jake was a puppy and used the table leg as a chew toy. Thankfully you can’t really see that unless you look down. And every morning as I’m eating my breakfast, I have to push in the end of the table since it hangs down a little, maybe from all of the elbows-on-the-table conversations we have had over the years.
Yeah...it’s kind of a wreck. Maybe I should get a new one. Thanksgiving is coming and I want everything to be nice...
Read More...
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I hope you've enjoyed our November newsletter! And please feel free to forward our newsletter to any lavender-loving friends who you think might enjoy it!
Pam
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