Lavender whipped cream

If you grow lavender, as I do, you are in luck: here is is January and I can go to my garden and harvest a few leaves from my plant. You might have a culinary lavender like Lavandula angustifolia officianalis also known as English lavender. Other culinary lavenders include Lavandula x intermedia "Provence", a hybrid which is reputed to be lower in camphor and resin than L. angustifolia officianalis. But I only have the officianalis in my garden so that is what I use. It is winter and there are no flowers on it, so I am using the leaves which are packed with flavor. You might be able to buy the lavender leaves at a Natural Food Store.
I served this with a homemade fruitcake and the clean flowery taste of the lavender whipped cream made a nice counterpoint to the heavier sweetness of the candied fruits, nuts and cake, although nicely candied citrus creates a high note also. Too much lavender in a dish can make it bitter, like rosemary. So start with a little, you can always add more. The flavor intensifies if the whipped cream is stored in the refrigerator for an hour or more.

1/2 cup of heavy (whipping) cream
1/4 teaspoon fresh lavender leaves minced very finely
1-2 teaspoons honey

Tools: Immersion blender, or other appliance suitable for whipping cream; I use a mini-blender as it pulverizes the lavender and whips up the honey easily due to the inversion created when attaching the canister to the base.

Put the cream and the lavender together and  whip for a few seconds to bruise the lavender and begin the thickening. Add the honey, drizzling it over the cream and continue whipping; you could also use confectioner's sugar. Use a silicone spatula to make sure all the honey is scooped up off the bottom of the bowl and incorporated into the whipped cream.

If you want stronger flavor add more lavender.

This tastes like heaven on coffee!