Lavender Friday

To try to get through the cold weather with its rain, snow, sleet and freezing rain, I've decided to think about fields of lavender.  Quelle bonne idée, n'est-ce pas?  Annie, of Sunshine Lavender Farms, has been a tremendous help.  Her latest email is nothing short of a feast for the winter-filled eyes.   See for yourself at  www.sunshinelavenderfarm.com  You can almost smell it.  Well, I actually can.  On my desk at this moment are two bottles of lavender hand cream and a small lavender sachet.  I also make my room at school smell good with a lavender and vanilla Glade plug-in thing.  I have the best smelling room in the middle school, bien sûr.  I have a lovely 2010 Provence calendar on my desk, too.  The little stone cottage of my dreams is on the cover.  The picture above is the one I took at the Abbayé de Senanque near Gordes.  A bit of the lavender oil that I brought home from there would be nice at the moment.  I have a headache and a little lavender on my temples would be very soothing.  I burned myself quite badly while cooking one night in Arles (hot oil splashed on my hand) and Chef Érick cured me with lavender.  I had to wait until it stopped burning so badly and then he massaged the lavender into the burns.  No more blisters, no more burning and no scars.  I became a believer.  Another wonderful find is the lavender-citrus body butter that I found at the Durham Farmers' Market made by MoonDance Soaps.  I rub it on my hands just before going to bed.  I get the lovely, soothing lavender scent and my hands are in much better shape when I wake up in the morning.  http://www.moondancesoaps.com/
I am working on my next newspaper article, about chocolat, and research must be thoroughly done.  This is serious business, you know.  I took a chocolate class this week with Teresa Wilkerson of WR Chocolatier and I am paying a visit to the Dolly Mama in downtown Durham this afternoon to see how she makes her wonderful chocolate creations.  A nice ending to the day.


Annie's Valentine's Day Chocolate Lavender Truffles
(from Sunshine Lavender Farms)

1 c. heavy cream
1 tsp. dried lavender florets (they sell these at Harris Teeter in the spice section)
12 oz. bittersweet chocolate (use the good stuff... about 62% is ideal- not too bitter)
1 c. unsweetened cocoa

Grate chocolate.  Bring cream and lavender to a simmer for one minute, then strain out the florets with cheesecloth.  Add cream to chocolate and stir to melt.  Mix well.  Chill at least 3 hours.  Roll into 1-inch balls, then roll in cocoa.

Makes 25 truffles.

Bon appétit, vendredi, la lavande et le chocolat!