Lavender chutney

[jenny_haddow]

I make this every year when the lavender flowers are nice and fresh. Its an unusual chutney and very popular with my family.

Recipe:

20 chopped lavender flowers
3 lemons, scrubbed and chopped
2 tablespoons mustard seeds
salt
3 onions finely chopped
2oz sultanas
1 cinnamon stick
pinch of ground allspice
sugar
white wine vinegar.

Make sure there are no 'residents' in the lavender, wash and dry the flowers.
Put the chopped lemons into a mixing bowl, sprinkle with salt and pour in enough white wine vinegar to cover them. Cover the bowl and leave to stand for 24 hours.
Next day place the mixture in a large pan and add the rest of the ingredients, how much sugar is down to your taste buds, I usually add about 12oz.
Stir until sugar has dissolved, bring to the boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer until the mixture is thick and the vinegar absorbed. Remove the cinnamon stick, and pour the chutney into warm, sterilised jars and seal tightly.

You can add more lavender if you wish, after all the size of the flowers can vary, it does add a nice background taste and it does need to be fresh lavender. In fact don't pick it until just before you cook it to keep optimum flavour.

Enjoy

Cheers

Jen

Edit

I've just completed this years batch. I have a broad leaf variety of lavender in the garden with lovely succulent leaves so I chopped six or seven into the recipe. Fantastic taste in the end result, hard to describe, but you get a good blend of the lemon peel sharpness and the lavender taste coming through, heightened by adding some leaves I think. Should be good in a few weeks time after it has aged a bit.

[TJ Buffalo]

It looks like an interesting recipe, Jenny. Are the lemons peeled in any way, or are they chopped with the rind still on?

[jenny_haddow]

Just chopped with the rind on TJ. The peel helps to impart a nice subtle bitterness I think.

[Zulululu]

Hi Jen,
Looks interesting I have both lavenders in my garden, the one with the broad leaf and saw tooth edge is Dutch lavender they seldom flower, the leaves have a stonger aroma than English lavender. Will make a batch tomorrow and let you know.

[Zulululu]

Hi Jen,
We both love it my wife in particular, but then women do love flowers.