Have I ever told you about the time Stevie Nicks and I shared a soul? No? Well, I'll save that for another post. But today I'm sharing a dessert that's scented with lavender. And in my mind the thought connection goes like this - lavender ~ lace ~ romance ~ Leather and Lace by two of my favorite artists of all time. Stevie Nicks is spellbinding when she performs. Don Henley is my favorite Eagle and his voice is balm to my soul. Another thing about Henley - he reminds me a lot of my uncles in his appearance - hairline, eyes - he could be related. And that's all I'm going to say about that.
I know Valentine's Day was yesterday
but romance is in the air in my
home right now as my
youngest is getting married in a
couple months!
All the preparations!!
Well, neither she nor her fiancé
like frosting and have
chosen to not have the traditional
wedding cake.
So what do they like?
Rice Krispie Treats!
And a walk through Pinterest
has informed me that they
aren't the only ones!
I wasn't too keen on
the idea of just regular ones
so she gave me permission
to try to come up with some
fancy variations.
In fancying up these treats
you need to keep texture in mind
and be sure that you don't
add anything that's going to mess
up its ability to hold a shape.
Or make it mushy.
My plan is to wrap each piece
individually with clear wrap
and label with a pretty label
as to its flavor and then
stack them on tiered stands
for the guests to help themselves.
Fingers crossed!
I have a list of about
eight different flavor combinations
with which I'm going to be experimenting.
The ones that turn out well
will be shared with you here!
And served at the reception!
The Lemon Lavender duo was the first
combo I tried.
The first batch was horrendous and
went straight into the trash.
Waaaaay too floral!
Choke!
Gag!
But I bet I had really lovely breath!
Haha!
I cut back the lavender by more than half
and it was still too floral -
left a bitter finish in the back of
the throat.
Third try was perfection!
I really needed to add some sort of topping
to make it pretty and special
so the melted and flavored almond bark
worked very well.
Whole lavender buds are
completely edible!
You might find some in your natural
foods section at the grocery store.
No sugar free treat this week,
but something very lovely indeed!
Lemon Lavender Rice Krispie Treats
makes 12
6 cups Rice Krispie cereal (160 g)
3 T. butter
10 oz. mini marshmallows
1 teaspoon lavender flower powder
2 Tablespoons lemon juice powder*
zest of one lemon
Glaze:
1 cup powdered sugar
juice from 1/2 lemon (1/4-1/3 cup)
1 Tablespoon butter, melted
Topping:
4 sections almond bark
1/4 teaspoon lemon oil
whole lavender buds
Grease a small 6" X 10 1/2" X 2" pan with a small amount of butter and set aside. I like to use a sandwich baggie to do this, putting my hand inside the baggie and picking up the butter and smearing it around. Save the baggie to spread the mixture in the pan. Clean hands!
Measure cereal in to a bowl and add the lavender flower powder. To make a powder I placed some whole buds into a food processor and pureed until reduced to a powder. Add the zest from the lemon and the lemon juice powder and stir to mix. Set aside.
In a large pot, melt the 3 Tablespoons butter over medium heat and then add the marshmallows. Stir until marshmallows have completely melted. Stir in the cereal mixture and mix until thoroughly coated. Scoop mixture into the prepared pan and pat down until even across the top. (Use the buttery baggie left over from greasing the pan.)
Put the lemon juice in a small bowl and start adding the powdered sugar until you get a nice glaze consistency. If it gets too thick, thin with more juice or a little water. Add the melted butter and stir. Pour over the top of the cereal mixture in the pan and spread to coat evenly. The glaze will run down into all the cracks and give the treat a vibrant lemony tang!
Melt the almond bark in a dish in the microwave in 15 second bursts, stirring after each, being careful to not scorch it. When it's completely smooth, stir in the lemon oil and spread evenly over the top of the treats. Sprinkle with the whole lavender buds while it's still wet.
Let sit until it hardens back up again - or, if you're impatient like me, stick it in the fridge or freezer and it will be set up in a few minutes.
Once the almond bark is set, carefully remove the treats from the pan with a spatula and cut into 12 equal portions. Enjoy!
* - I bought my lemon juice powder from King Arthur Flour.
No comments:
Post a Comment