Strawberry Lavender Cocktail

Can't you just taste it already? These two amazing summery flavors combine to make a drink that deserves to be served on your patio at least once this season. (Or twice. Or more.)

We decided we wanted to really get the full flavor of fresh seasonal strawberries in this cocktail, so we pureed and then strained them, to get out all those pesky seeds. (A few seeds don't bother me, they are so itty bitty, but you do want to use as fine a strainer as you have.) This drink was also our first time using a lavender simple syrup, though certainly not our last. (I am drinking a lavender lemon cocktail as I type this!) This drink just gets me fired up for farmers' markets and the sweet smell of summer.

Strawberry Lavender Cocktail

• 1/3 cup strained strawberry puree (see note below)
• 1 oz lavender simple syrup
• 2 oz vodka

Place strawberry puree in a glass. Add simple syrup and vodka and stir vigorously. Add lots of ice, and enjoy!

Note: We pureed 15 large strawberries which resulted in enough puree for at least 4 drinks. Puree in a food processor or blender to get it as smooth as possible. Use a very fine sieve to remove as many seeds as possible, pressing the puree through with a spatula.

Lavender Simple Syrup

I was going to include the recipe for lavender simple syrup in our next cocktail post, the delicious strawberry lavender cocktail, but then I felt it is too tasty of a concoction - it needs to be the star of the show for at least a few minutes.

Simple syrups are so, well, simple. They allow flavor infusions with just a few minutes at the stovetop. No need to wait for booze infusions which can take weeks. Once you have made your simple syrup, refrigerate it, and it should last three to four weeks allowing ample time to experiment with new and exciting drinks! I already have a few up my sleeve.

Lavender Simple Syrup

• 2 cups sugar
• 2 cups water
• 3 TB dried lavender 

Place everything in a medium pot. Bring to boil, stirring to dissolve sugar. Reduce heat, continuing to stir until all sugar is dissolved. When it is, remove the pot from the heat, and let steep for 30 minutes. Strain out the lavender buds, and refrigerate. Makes 2 cups.

Lemon Croutons + Links We Love

One day this week for dinner I made a brothy orzo soup with chicken, herbs, and lemon.  It was delicious, but it wanted something crunchy to go on top. I was in the process of making croutons with a stale baguette (chop it up in squares, sautee in olive oil on medium-low until crispy and golden) when I remembered this lemon infused olive oil I had in my cupboard.  So I made lemon infused croutons.  WHOA.  So good. Amazing on soup as well as salad - the lemon is subtle, fresh, and delicious.  You can buy lemon infused olive oil (I got mine as a free sample from here - cute packaging!) or you can make your own.  Here's a recipe.

Some links we're loving this week:

Dulcie's new favorite last-minute supper.
This fresh dish, by Turntable Kitchen, which would be awesome with homemade ricotta! 
Is organic produce better? A science experiment done by a middle schooler.  Cool.

Chocolate Covered Vanilla Cream Puffs

Cream puffs, profiteroles, éclairs of a different shape, or choux a la crème are all the same delicious thing.  Darling little pastry puffs that bake up light, airy, and practically hollow in the middle and are filled with vanilla pastry cream. Then drizzled with melted chocolate.  I love vanilla, I love chocolate, but my very favorite things are a combo of the two.

I was browsing through the cookbook section at the library and came across a picture of éclairs on the back of one (Dorie Greenspan’s Around My French Table).  Like, the most delicious picture of éclairs you’ve ever seen. Once I saw that picture I could not stop thinking about making éclairs for myself IMMEDIATELY.  After obsessing over cream puffs for about an hour I dropped everything, went to the store to gather my supplies, and got cooking.  I tend to be a little impulsive like that.  But hey! It’s fun! I made cream puffs, I’m not doing anything dangerous!

They’re not difficult to make, but there are quite a few components.  You could easily split this up over a few days if you’d like.  The pastry dough, once plopped into little balls on a baking sheet, can be frozen and then baked (from the frozen state) at any time.  The pastry cream can also be made ahead and then given a quick stir to loosen it prior to spooning it into the cream puffs.  The melted chocolate step is easy – I just melted a nice chocolate bar (but you could just as easily use chocolate chips if you have them on hand) and then drizzled it over the filled cream puffs using a spoon. 

Chocolate Covered Vanilla Cream Puffs

Recipe from Dorie Greenspan’s Around My French Table; a cookbook we highly recommend!

This is a longish recipe and has two steps.  You can make the dough & cream filling separately – the magic doesn’t have to happen all on the same day.  Make the pastry dough, spoon onto a baking sheet, and then freeze for the future.  You can bake these from their frozen state, no need to defrost.  Follow the same directions for baking as un-frozen puffs – they may need an extra minute or so, but that’s it. You can also make the Pastry Cream a day or two in advance – just store it in the fridge until you need it.

Pastry Dough:

• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/2 cup water
• 8 Tablespoons butter, cut into large pieces
• 1 Tablespoon sugar
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 cup flour
• 4 large eggs (room temp)

Preheat the oven to 425. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment or a silpat.

Bring the milk, water, butter, sugar, and salt to a rapid boil.  Add the flour, reduce heat to medium-low, and start stirring like crazy! I used a big whisk, you could also use a wooden spoon.  The dough will come together in a ball, a crust may form on the bottom of the pan – just keep stirring for one to two minutes.  This gives the dough the chance to dry out a bit.

Turn the dough into a large bowl (use a stand mixer if you have one.  I don’t, so I used a hand held mixer), let it cool for a minute, then add the eggs one by one.  Beat and beat until the dough is thick and shiny.

Using about a tablespoon of dough for each cream puff, drop the dough from the spoon onto your baking sheet leaving about 2 inches between each ball.  *Once that’s done you can either bake immediate or freeze the dough balls for use later.*  If you want to bake, slide them into the 425 oven and immediately reduce temp to 375.  Bake for 24-30 minutes.  They’re done when they’re golden, puffed, and firm.

Pastry Cream:

• 2 cups whole milk
• 6 egg yolks
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/3 cup cornstarch
• 1 1/2 tsp vanilla
• 3 1/2 Tbsp butter, cut into small squares

Bring the milk to a boil.  In a separate, larger saucepan, whisk together egg yolks, sugar, and cornstarch.  Whisking without stopping, slowly drizzle the hot milk into the egg yolk mixture.  Go very slowly at first (first 1/4 cup of hot milk) after that it’s OK to speed up a bit.  Keep on whisking, turn up the heat, and bring the mixture to a boil.  Keep it at a boil – and keep up your crazy whisking – for 1-2 minutes. Remove from heat.

Whisk in vanilla.  Let stand for 5 minutes, then whisk in the butter bits.  Scoop into a bowl, cover in plastic, and let cool in the fridge.  Your pastry cream is ready!

To Assemble:

Cut lids off the baked cream puff shells.  They’ll be pretty much hollow inside.  Scoop the pastry cream in to fill them puffs, then put the lids back on.  Melt chocolate and then drizzle over the tops of the filled cream puffs – I did the drizzling with a small spoon.  You’re done!