Lavender Cookies & Other Purple Passions

"You can never have enough purple in the garden." - Grandma Anne

Critters outsmart me, gobbling my tulip bulbs, so I force Tulips indoors.

When I was a college kid, I tried hard to be dark and brooding. I even went through the black and white photography phase. Mostly because I thought that made me look artistic and hopefully kind of cool.

French Lavender (Lavender stoechas, zone 8) grows fast by seed in a sunny window, with true flowers vs. narrow sprigs.

When I showed off my artsy fartsy photos to my Grandma Anne, she yawned and told me they were not 'snapping her socks.' (i.e. boring) Then she proceeded to educate me on a few more inescapable truths:

Kate, she said, give it up. You're never gonna be cool. The real point of taking pictures is to document the bright spots in a colorful life.

All Lavender is edible but most of them don't taste that great. Grow English Lavender (Lavandula angustifolia) if you plan to cook with it. Do all Grandmas smell like lavender? I hope so.

These are for you, Gram.

Lavender Cookies

• 1.25 cups butter
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 eggs
• 3 cups flour
• 4 tablespoons fresh lavender flowers, crushed

Cream together butter, sugar and eggs. Mix in the flour and lavender flowers. Spoon onto a cookie sheet. Bake about 15 minutes @ 350 degrees F. (You might as well double the batch right now because you know in your heart that you want to...)

Forced Tulips and French Lavender spend their days sunning themselves on my deck. Both warm their toes, indoors, at night.