I know its not lamb, or lentils or liquorice, but instead chose a slightly different but not uncommon cooking ingredient; Lavender.

We all know this purple fragrant flower to feature heavily in soaps, perfumes, little bags in grandma’s drawer of smalls.  It is used in aromatherapy, known for its calming qualities and the flowers make for a very pretty, rustic posy on the kitchen table.

Lavender is over 2500 years old and there are apparently 39 species known around the world.

My mum has been visiting us and in her many bags of goodies, brought me 2 different samples of dried lavender, lavender oil and also a bunch of fresh lavender from her garden.  Coming from the Mint family, it grows just as abundantly.

I was going to bake something with Lavender, and a sprinkle of this floral herb in your shortbread mix would be lovely.  But I thought about tackling a savoury dish and while it pairs beautifully with lamb and rosemary, I have instead chosen a more delicate dish from Rachel Khoo’s Little Paris Cookbook.  It combines lavender with thyme, lemon and honey to create a surprisingly subtle and tasty roast chicken dish with a lovely sauce.

As she advises, go easy on the lavender, less is best in this instance to avoid the dish tasting like a Loccitane hand cream !  But served with a few potatoes and a green salad is ideal and what’s more it is so so simple to prepare.

We have survived the first few weeks of school and we know get to enjoy a 4 day weekend to celebrate Eid Al Adha.

Eid Mubarak!

Chicken with Lavender, Lemon and Honey

 

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Prep time

15 mins

Cook time

45 mins

Total time

1 hour

 

P S This would be just as delicious with a couple of different herbs, such as rosemary, thyme or oregano if you can't get a hold of the lavender

Author: adapted from Rachel Khoo

Serves: 4

Ingredients

• 4 chicken supremes or enough chicken pieces skin on, bone in to feed 4
• 1 tablespoon lavender, slightly crushed with a mortar and pestle
• 2-3 tablespoons honey
• 2-3 sprigs fresh thyme
• grated zest and juice of one lemon
• 4 tablespoons olive oil
• generous pinch of sea salt

Instructions

1. Pre heat your oven to 200 degrees
2. Prepare the chicken in advance.
3. In a small bowl, prepare the marinade by combining the lavender, honey, thyme, lemon juice and zest and oil.
4. In a baking dish just big enough to snuggly fit the chicken pieces in a single layer, place the chicken in the dish and cover with the marinade.
5. Cover and set aside for minimum 4 hours, possibly overnight
6. Place the dish in the oven and bake for 45 minutes until golden brown, sticky and saucy
7. Serve with greens and potatoes, boiled or roasted

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