Lavender
It’s lovely to smell a hint of lavender in your hand soap or lotion, but how about in your dinner?
Since 2004, people have been shopping at Great Lakes Lavender — a farm in Chatham-Kent, Ontario — for lavender linen spray, lotion, candles and essential oil derived from the season’s harvest.
What’s more surprising is that the herb is quickly becoming popular as a flavorer in food of all sorts. “A lot of people don’t think of lavender as something you cook with,” says Matt Korpan, who owns Great Lakes Lavender with his wife, Kate. “I think it’s something that people need to take a chance on and give it a try from a culinary aspect.”
From teas, to lemonade, to ice cream, to beef, dried lavender and lavender oil can be found in myriad recipes. Lavender is a member of the mint family and is closely related to sage, rosemary and thyme.
When the Korpans planted 500 lavender plants in 2004, they were simply looking for something to do as a hobby. Each year, they’d add a few thousand more.
After losing about half of the first several thousand plants they sowed, the Korpans quickly discovered that some varieties simply wouldn’t grow in this climate. “Nobody else at the time was growing lavender in Ontario, so we had to learn the hard way,” Matt says.
Once established, though, lavender is a resilient plant, drought-resistant and usually killed off only by dampness from heavy, wet soil. It’s relatively low-maintenance, needing only a little bit of trimming and a lot of sunlight. The Korpans’ farm now boasts more than 8,000 plants.
Its customer base has grown, too. At Great Lakes Lavender, the lavender honey is among its best-selling products. And it’s the real thing, not just lavender oil added to honey. Because the Korpans have their own beehives on the premises, the bees actually take nectar from the lavender plants and produce honey from it. Its taste is unique and it’s a very rare honey product. Customers interested in trying some should hurry, though — the honey has sold out so early every year that the Korpans started a wait list for the following season.
Great Lakes Lavender also has its own herbes de Provence spice mix, which, in addition to lavender, includes a blend of Mediterranean herbs. “We use it on just about everything here at home,” Matt says, listing pizzas, chicken, vegetables and soup, among other things.
People might imagine that food with lavender in it tastes like perfume, but Matt says that different varieties of lavender produce different flavors. “Some may be purely floral,” he says. “Others tend to produce a sweeter floral taste and some can even give a bit of spice to a recipe.”
A few years ago, the Korpans decided to host an “open field” as a way for customers to come see them and the work they do. Each year, more and more people came. Before they knew it, local artists, knitters, organic produce sellers, musicians and more were asking if they could set up stands or perform at the lavender farm. The open field became an annual weekend festival.
“We were sort of surprised when we’d have carloads of people showing up and find out they had come all that way just for us,” Matt says. It’s all proof, he says, of the herb’s growing popularity.
“There’s a lot you can do with lavender,” Matt says. “It’s just about educating people and finding people who are willing to experiment with something new.”
Save the Date
The eighth annual Great Lakes Lavender Festival will be held July 6 and 7.
If You Go
Great Lakes Lavender Farm
Chatham, Ontario
519-397-2172
greatlakeslavender.com
Lavender Cookies
(makes about five dozen)
Matt and Kate Korpan serve these cookies on their farm during private group tours and also enjoy them at home or take them to friends’ houses when invited to dinner. Provence is the variety of lavender most often used for cooking and baking.
1⁄2 cup shortening
1⁄2 cup butter, softened
1 1/4 cups sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1⁄2 teaspoon almond extract
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
4 teaspoons dried lavender flowers.*
1 teaspoon baking powder
1⁄2 teaspoon salt
In a large mixing bowl, cream the shortening, butter and sugar. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in extracts. Combine flour, lavender, baking powder and salt; gradually add to creamed mixture and mix well. Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls 2 inches apart onto baking sheets lightly coated with non-stick cooking spray. Bake at 375 degrees for 8-10 minutes or until golden brown. Cool for 2 minutes before removing to wire racks. Store in an airtight container.
* Dry lavender by bunching a dozen or so stems together and hanging upside down in a dry place out of direct sun for one to two weeks. When dry, gently rub the stems together and flowers should fall off easily. Store dried flowers in plastic baggies or glass jars with tight-fitting lids.
Since 2004, people have been shopping at Great Lakes Lavender — a farm in Chatham-Kent, Ontario — for lavender linen spray, lotion, candles and essential oil derived from the season’s harvest.
What’s more surprising is that the herb is quickly becoming popular as a flavorer in food of all sorts. “A lot of people don’t think of lavender as something you cook with,” says Matt Korpan, who owns Great Lakes Lavender with his wife, Kate. “I think it’s something that people need to take a chance on and give it a try from a culinary aspect.”
From teas, to lemonade, to ice cream, to beef, dried lavender and lavender oil can be found in myriad recipes. Lavender is a member of the mint family and is closely related to sage, rosemary and thyme.
When the Korpans planted 500 lavender plants in 2004, they were simply looking for something to do as a hobby. Each year, they’d add a few thousand more.
After losing about half of the first several thousand plants they sowed, the Korpans quickly discovered that some varieties simply wouldn’t grow in this climate. “Nobody else at the time was growing lavender in Ontario, so we had to learn the hard way,” Matt says.
Once established, though, lavender is a resilient plant, drought-resistant and usually killed off only by dampness from heavy, wet soil. It’s relatively low-maintenance, needing only a little bit of trimming and a lot of sunlight. The Korpans’ farm now boasts more than 8,000 plants.
Its customer base has grown, too. At Great Lakes Lavender, the lavender honey is among its best-selling products. And it’s the real thing, not just lavender oil added to honey. Because the Korpans have their own beehives on the premises, the bees actually take nectar from the lavender plants and produce honey from it. Its taste is unique and it’s a very rare honey product. Customers interested in trying some should hurry, though — the honey has sold out so early every year that the Korpans started a wait list for the following season.
Great Lakes Lavender also has its own herbes de Provence spice mix, which, in addition to lavender, includes a blend of Mediterranean herbs. “We use it on just about everything here at home,” Matt says, listing pizzas, chicken, vegetables and soup, among other things.
People might imagine that food with lavender in it tastes like perfume, but Matt says that different varieties of lavender produce different flavors. “Some may be purely floral,” he says. “Others tend to produce a sweeter floral taste and some can even give a bit of spice to a recipe.”
A few years ago, the Korpans decided to host an “open field” as a way for customers to come see them and the work they do. Each year, more and more people came. Before they knew it, local artists, knitters, organic produce sellers, musicians and more were asking if they could set up stands or perform at the lavender farm. The open field became an annual weekend festival.
“We were sort of surprised when we’d have carloads of people showing up and find out they had come all that way just for us,” Matt says. It’s all proof, he says, of the herb’s growing popularity.
“There’s a lot you can do with lavender,” Matt says. “It’s just about educating people and finding people who are willing to experiment with something new.”
Save the Date
The eighth annual Great Lakes Lavender Festival will be held July 6 and 7.
If You Go
Great Lakes Lavender Farm
Chatham, Ontario
519-397-2172
greatlakeslavender.com
Lavender Cookies
(makes about five dozen)
Matt and Kate Korpan serve these cookies on their farm during private group tours and also enjoy them at home or take them to friends’ houses when invited to dinner. Provence is the variety of lavender most often used for cooking and baking.
1⁄2 cup shortening
1⁄2 cup butter, softened
1 1/4 cups sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1⁄2 teaspoon almond extract
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
4 teaspoons dried lavender flowers.*
1 teaspoon baking powder
1⁄2 teaspoon salt
In a large mixing bowl, cream the shortening, butter and sugar. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in extracts. Combine flour, lavender, baking powder and salt; gradually add to creamed mixture and mix well. Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls 2 inches apart onto baking sheets lightly coated with non-stick cooking spray. Bake at 375 degrees for 8-10 minutes or until golden brown. Cool for 2 minutes before removing to wire racks. Store in an airtight container.
* Dry lavender by bunching a dozen or so stems together and hanging upside down in a dry place out of direct sun for one to two weeks. When dry, gently rub the stems together and flowers should fall off easily. Store dried flowers in plastic baggies or glass jars with tight-fitting lids.