I went to visit my Italian family recently and harvested some of the lavender from Uncle Vinnie's and Aunt Francesca's garden. We dried it and removed the lavender flowers from the stems. Each fragrant lavender bud was a delight to my senses. I learned that the Italian's use the dried flowers for cooking, for lavender water in their laundry spray when ironing clothes, for leaving under the pillow to help with a calm sleep and mainly to cook with. Lavender grows well in Tuscany and can be found in most Tuscan gardens. Here is the favorite seasonal recipe Aunt Francesca shared with me.
Lavender Chicken with Caramelized Peaches
Ingredients:
- 2 chicken breasts
- 4 large peaches or nectarines
- 3 whole lavender flowers, without stems
- 1 cup dried breadcrumbs
- 2 large eggs
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1.
| Beat the chicken breasts well with a rolling pin on a solid surface. Lightly dust the flattened breasts with some seasoned flour and set aside.
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2.
| Finely chop the lavender flowers and mix with the breadcrumbs.
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3.
| Immerse the breasts in the beaten eggs and then coat in the breadcrumb and lavender mixture, set aside in the refrigerator to rest. Keep in refrigerator at least 30 minutes. |
4.
| In the meantime slice the peaches or nectarines into thin slices, heat a cup of unsalted butter in a non-stick pan
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Carmelized peaches
5.
| When the butter foams, add the peach slices and pan-fry until golden brown and caramelized. Then place peaches or nectarines in a warm serving dish and cover.
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6.
| Heat a generous amount of olive oil in a non-stick pan to a medium heat and fry the chicken breasts until cooked through and golden brown.
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7.
| Drain on absorbent kitchen paper, sprinkle with a pinch of fine sea salt and serve.
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Top chicken cutlets with peach mixture. Enjoy this Italian recipe using lavender. If you need lavender for this recipe send me an email to askbuddy@hawaii.rr.com and I will mail you some.
Remember to spread the Aloha Spirit wherever you live.
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