It's not often that I share a recipe on the blog that isn't a baked good, but this Lavender Sugar is so delicious it deserves its own spotlight!
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This Homemade Lavender Sugar combines sweet, aromatic lavender with granulated sugar for the ultimate flavor enhancer! Add it to baked goods, flavor your tea, use it to rim cocktail glasses, and more!
If you enjoy this recipe, check out the posts for my Honey Lavender Latte Cookies, Strawberry Lavender Pound Cake, and Lavender Lemon Cake!
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What is Lavender Sugar?
Lavender Sugar is regular granulated sugar that has been infused with lavender flowers (either fresh or dried). Over time, the sugar takes on the lovely flavor of the lavender, and its uses are limited only by your imagination! Lavender Sugar has a sweet, floral flavor with lemon and citrus notes that make it an extremely versatile ingredient!
How to Choose Lavender
You can buy lavender online, at farmer's markets, or you can grow it yourself! Here are a few things to consider when choosing lavender:
Not all lavender is created equal! Here's some science for ya: lavender is any plant of the genus Lavandula, which includes 47 species of flowers. Not all of these species should be used in baking or cooking. What you want to look for is English lavender, which is most commonly used in food. English lavender isn't as strong as other lavenders, which means it's less likely to overwhelm the other flavors in your food or make it taste soapy.
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You want culinary lavender! The next step in choosing lavender is to make sure that it's safe to eat. Culinary lavender will not only lend appropriate flavor to your food, but it is meant to be eaten, meaning that it won't have been sprayed with any harmful chemicals.
Pay attention to the color and scent. The more vivid the color and the more pleasant the smell of the lavender, the better it will taste. If the flowers are drab in color or don't smell lovely (with either too much or too little aroma), move on!
Ingredients
TWO ingredients. That's it! See the recipe card (below) for ingredient measurements. The recipe can easily be scaled up or down depending on how much lavender sugar you need.
- Sugar - For sweetness.
- Culinary Lavender - For flavor, fresh or dried. Note that you need to use *culinary* lavender, both for best flavor and to ensure that it's safe to eat. You'll use a different amount of lavender depending on your taste and whether you're using fresh or dried lavender.
Instructions
This recipe can easily be scaled up or down depending on how much Lavender Sugar you want. If making a large batch, it's easier to make several smaller batches than to try to make a large amount all at once.
Pour a small amount of sugar and all the lavender into a coffee grinder or food processor. Process until lavender is ground finely.
Pour the sugar/lavender mixture into a bowl with the remaining sugar and whisk to combine.
Hint: Make sure your coffee grinder or food processor is *completely* dry before you begin!
How to Use Lavender Sugar
So now you know how to make lavender sugar, but how do you use it? Here are some ideas for you:
- In baked goods - Substitute plain sugar with lavender sugar in bakes. Cakes, cookies, pies...you name it!
- In whipped cream - The floral flavor is a lovely addition to whipped cream!
- In coffee or tea - Make your coffee or tea even more flavorful! Just ensure that your lavender is ground finely, as the sugar will dissolve, and the lavender will not.
- To rim cocktail glasses - Lavender Sugar doesn't work as well to sweeten cold beverages, as the sugar doesn't dissolve as readily. However, it's fantastic on the rim of a cocktail glass!
- Add to butter - Add a little to some softened butter and you have the perfect accompaniment for biscuits, scones, breads, and more!
- Use as a garnish - Sprinkle a little on top of cake or cookies or anything that could use a little floral flavor.
- Sprinkle over fresh fruit - A fantastic way to fancy up fresh fruit, and pairs beautifully with berries, stone fruits, and citrus.
Hint: Because of all the fantastic uses for Lavender Sugar, it also makes a great gift! In just a few minutes you can have jars of flavored sugar for gifting to family and friends!
If you want to try another flavored sugar, check out my post for Strawberry Sugar, too!
Equipment
Coffee Grinder - A coffee ginder is my preferred equipment for this recipe, as the bowl is quite small. I bought one with a removable, dishwasher-safe bowl so that it's easy to clean between uses!
Food Processor - If you don't have a coffee grinder, a food processor is your next best bet. A small/mini food processor will work best. If you have a larger food processor, definitely use the smallest bowl insert that you have.
Glass Jar(s) - I store my Lavender Sugar in glass jars. Small, decorative jars are perfect for gifting!
Storage
Lavender Sugar can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to six months. If you used fresh lavender, you may have to stir/break up the sugar occasionally due to the moisture in the fresh flowers.
Top tip
There are many people who say they don't like the flavor of lavender because it's overpowering or tastes soapy. If anything with lavender tastes like soap, either the wrong type or too much lavender was used!
A little goes a long way! If you're hesitant, start with less lavender than I have listed in the recipe and increase to taste.
FAQ
You want to use culinary lavender, as it is meant for cooking/baking and is free of any potentially harmful chemicals. If you're shopping at a farmer's market or growing lavender yourself, English Lavender is the variety most commonly used in food.
Other Recipes You May Like:
Lavender Sugar
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 cups sugar
- 1 tablespoon dried culinary lavender (or 3 Tablespoons fresh lavender; see note)
Instructions
- Pour a few tablespoons sugar and all the lavender into a coffee grinder. (If using a food processor, you may have to use ¼ cup sugar to get the lavender to process finely, as it has a larger bowl.)
- Process the sugar and lavender until the lavender is ground finely. This process nearly "powders" the sugar, which is why you don't want to process all the sugar at once.
- Pour the sugar/lavender mixture into a bowl with the remaining sugar and whisk to combine. Sugar can be used immediately, and will keep in an airtight container at room temperature for up to six months. If you used fresh lavender, you may have to stir/break up the sugar occasionally due to the moisture in the fresh flowers.Enjoy!
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