Lavender Scone Recipe

Lavender Scones

Ingredients:

2 c. all-purpose flour
2 tsp. baking powder
3/4 tsp. salt
1/3 c. sugar
6 tbsp. butter (frozen)
3/4 c. heavy cream (chilled)
2 eggs (beaten)
1/2 tsp. dried lavender buds (minced)

Direction:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Combine all the dry ingredients and pulse in food processor for 4 pulses. Add butter and pulse for a few more pulses until pea sized pieces of butter are in the flour mixture. Empty into bowl and place in freezer to chill. Whisk together wet ingredients and set aside. Once flour mixture is chilled, make well in centre and add wet ingredients to well. Blend wet and dry ingredients until just combined. Add the minced lavender to the assembled dough and stir until just combined. Turn the mixture out onto lightly floured parchment paper. Roll out into a 1 inch thick round disk. Using a serrated knife, cut the round into 8 equal parts. Place the wedges on an ungreased baking dish about 1 inch apart. Bake the scones for 23-25 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from oven and place on cooling rack. Serve room temperature with a nice cup of tea!

Recommended Tea: Loose leaf Rooibos Provence Tea. Available in our retail store.

A Little Touch of Provence

Mr. Joe Korpan just made his delivery today of some dried lavender from his lavender farm just outside of town. That's right folks, it's local...can you believe we have these beautiful lavender fields just outside of Chatham! The delicate smell is filling the store and its pretty bunches are giving me a smile (even though I'm having a very, very, very busy day) We have brought in the food-grade variety, so you can add it to your scones, cookies, tea...or your bath! I will post some different recipes tomorrow...working late to finish a wedding order...busy, busy, bee! I think this bride is going to have a beautiful weekend!

Oh, Mr. Darcy

Take a break, you need it. This evening, when you've got all your extra work finished, dinner cleaned up, the lawn mowed, the gardens weeded, the trash at the curb, kids bathed and put to bed...or whatever else occupies your evening. Take a break, a break just for you. Now this post my not interest some men, but girls, I know that you can't resist a little Jane Austen. My personal favourite is Persuasion. I would have always said that my favourite was Sense and Sensibility but now Persuasion has made it to the top of the list. Now, find a nice cozy spot in your home. Light a candle, prepare a cup of herbal tea and put it in your fanciest tea cup with a saucer. On a small dish add a nice truffle (the lavender truffle is perfect with herbal tea) and sit and enjoy. A little quiet reading, a nice cup of tea and a decadent piece of chocolate makes the world melt away! Oh, Mr. Darcy...

Wine and Chocolate Tasting - August 14th

The upcoming class in our Taste and Learn series of classes is on August 14th at 7:00pm in the retail boutique. It is a wine and chocolate tasting and will be great fun. Our friends from Smith&Wilson Winery will be treating you with samples of their wines and we will be tempting you with delicious chocolates. This will be a great night out! Tickets are $30.00 Call to book you seat 519-351-0555. Hope to see you there!

Garage Sale Treasure

Before


After

This little gem was found at a garage sale in Chatham. The lady that sold it to me was so nice. It had been her grandmother's and I believe she said that she kept her sewing on it. I really love rustic pieces of furniture that look like they have been used often and loved for a long time. This table really charmed me and I knew exactly where to put it! I painted it a very, very pale avocado and stained the top a dark walnut. It really compliments the truffle boxes and gift bags on the table. This table really fits in nicely at the store and I hope it is here for a very, very long time. What a find!

Bathroom Makeover - The Before

Here are the before pictures of my bathroom makeover. Clearly you can see why I was so desperate to redo it!

Bathroom Makeover

This bathroom makeover was done last summer but I've decided to post it anyway. After many a morning showering in the dungeon that was my bathroom, I got fed up enough to actually tackle this project during the start of my busy season at the store. Probably not the best idea because of all the late nights it took to get it finished. Well, I say "finished" but there still are a few touch-ups in the paint to complete. Here is the finished product!

Best Chocolate Chip Cookies

Once in a while we make chocolate chip cookies at the shop. I love a good chewy chocolate chip cookies the only thing that really makes or breaks a good chocolate chip cookie for me is the sweetness level. I love my sweets, don't get me wrong but I have never liked that headache-inducing sweet that usually accompanies mass-produced baked goods and confections. The recipe I like to use is adapted from an Alton Brown recipe book (my favourite Food Network chef). Here it is:

1 cup butter
2 1/4 c bread flour (really important if you want nice chewy cookies)
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 c. sugar
1 1/4 c. brown sugar
1 egg
1 egg yolk
2 tbsp. milk
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla
2 cups 70% chocolate chips or chunks (really important if you like a not too sweet cookie...worth the splurge!)
1 cup toasted pecans (I sometimes candy mine with a little maple syrup and cayenne pepper...gives a nice kick...men usually like this addition)

Directions:
Heat oven to 375 degree F. Melt the butter in a heavy-bottom saucepan. Sift together the flour, salt and baking soda (set aside).
Pour the melted butter in the mixer's bowl. Add the sugar and brown sugar. Cream the butter and sugars. Add the egg, yolk, milk and vanilla until well combined. Stir in the chocolate chips and pecans. Chill the dough. Spoon out onto silpat sheets (6 per sheet) and bake for 14 minutes or until golden brown. Enjoy!

The Ice Cream Run

When I was apprenticing in Toronto at a chocolaterie, I would walk by an ice cream parlour that had all different flavours of delicious ice creams. I would stop quite frequently and partake in the sub-zero sweet (my favourite is Coffee Toffee). Well, when I opened up the shop I wanted to serve ice cream to help with the softer chocolate sales in the summer. There was only one problem, I had to have Greg's Ice Cream..nothing else would do! Well, fast-forward four years and I am still driving up to Toronto (3 hours away) to pick up this ice cream. It is sort of a mad dash up and back and every time I still panic that I'm going to hit a major traffic jam and it will all melt. I really need to sort out a better way. That's all today...I'm off to get my ice cream.

Greg's Ice Cream Flavours to try: Roasted Marshmallow, COFFEE TOFFEE, Strawberry Lemon, Chocolate-Mint Oreo, Green Tea, Mango...ah, the list goes on and on!

5 Years....

I can't believe it but this October 25th will be my 5th wedding anniversary! Time flies when you are having fun and we sure have had fun in the last 5 years. To honour this special occasion we are taking a trip to Italy. We plan to tour the northern part of the country. I would be truly grateful for any suggestions on sites to see or day trips to take. I would love to see authentic Italy and visit the markets and possibly stay in a country villa. We are leaving in early September...October is way too close to my busy season in the shop so we'll have to celebrate a little early. Ciao!

Mushroom Claire

Miss Mouse celebrated her 1st birthday!  I'm trying to learn more about cake decorating. This one was my first attempt at a character cake.  It was a fun adventure and I hope to post more soon!  

French Provincial

Provence...the word hints of the smell of a beautiful perfume.  The smell of lavender warming in the sunshine and the sounds of birds chirping a romantic French tune.  It makes you want to stroll through the fields with a basket and a lost sense of direction.  

"Beauty of whatever kind, in its supreme development, invariable excites the sensitive soul to tears."  Edgar Allan Poe

Welcome!

Bonjour and welcome to my first post!  I thought I would kick-off the blog with one of my favourite things...Parisian Macarons.  I have never been to Paris, but these little petite gems are like a trip to the capitol of pastry and chocolates.  I've been meaning to include them in my production at the shop but have yet to find the time...(busy little bee making all her sweets for all her sweet customers).  But I did get a chance to bring some in from a pastry shop in Toronto for our "Marie Antoinette - Let Them Eat Cake" weekend at the shop.  They were delicious and a real inspiration for creation!