Lavender

Before I became a professional chef I used lavender in dried form as part of herbes de Provence, but now I also use the fresh flowers.

Lavender plants in flower	Lavender bract	Lavender leaves	Dried lavender leaves and flowers

Species:	Lavandula angustifolia.
Origin:	Mediterranean.
Source:	Lavender is native to the Western Mediterranean region, where it has been known since antiquity, but the plant is now cultivated throughout the world. Although a common ornamental in many parts of Europe, France is the only Mediterranean country where lavender is grown commercially, for extraction of lavender oil to be used in perfumery. There is also some lavender oil production in Hungary and South-Eastern Europe (mainly Bulgaria).
Used Part:	Flowers and, to a lesser degree, leaves.
Family:	Lamiaceae (mint family).
Effect:	Lavender has a very strong, characteristic perfumed odour. Lavender tastes of bitter-sweet fresh-cut wood and rosemary, which gives an unusual but pleasant accent to a wide array of foods. The bitterness is more pronounced in the leaves than in the flowers.
Etymology:	The genus name lavendula and English common name lavender has an ambiguous derivation, possibly from the Latin verb lavare "to wash" (a reference to the refreshing fragrant qualities of the plant and its use in bath essences) but more probably via Medieval Latin lavandula "marjoram" or "lavender" from Latin lividus "to be blue".
	Most European and even some non-European languages have very similar names for lavender, e.g. German lavendel, Spanish lavanda, Latvian lavandīna, Bulgarian lavandula, Greek levanta, Turkish lavânta çiçeği and Hebrew lavender. In Western Asia, however, one finds a group of interrelated names that have an independent origin, e.g. Arabic khuzama, Armenian husam and Farsi ostu-khuduz. The origin of those names is unknown but it may be assumed that Portuguese alfazema and Spanish alhucema belong to the same series and that it originates as an Arabic loan, as they are both similar to Arabic al-khuzama "the lavender".
	Species name augustifolia derives from Old Latin augustus "narrow" and folia "leaves".
Uses:	Only recently has lavender come generally into vogue as a culinary ingredient, even though the herbes de Provence combination of marjoram, rosemary, thyme, lavender, chervil, tarragon, savory and fennel has been popular in France for a long time. This mixture is used for many dishes of the region, especially fish but also meat and vegetables. A famous example is ratatouille, a flavourful vegetable stew made of courgettes, tomatoes, onions, aubergines and peppers. Apart for its use in herbes de Provence, most classical European cookbooks make no mention of using lavender in cooking in their herb references.
	Lavender is often associated with sweets, but more adventurous chefs are taking the French example and adding it to savoury dishes, where lavender can be used as a substitute for thyme or marjoram, crushed with garlic to add to a dish in the last few minutes of cooking. Lavender makes a good accompaniment for sweet and savoury roast chicken and lamb, fish, potatoes, herbal teas, jams and jellies and as a flavouring for vinegars and honey. Lavender also combines well with garlic and strong veined cheese (especially Italian gorgonzola and French Roquefort). A light hand should be used when seasoning with lavender, as too much will give an astringent taste. Grinding lavender with granulated sugar is an excellent vehicle for incorporating it into dessert recipes as well as a good way to sweeten lemonade. Lavender can be used to lend a unique character to home-made jams and fruit jellies and even appears in ice cream.
	Although the woolly-looking leaves are fragrant and edible, the pretty purple flowers and buds are the best for cooking. Dried lavender is nearly as good as fresh and is available as loose flowers or still on the stem. If not found among shop herbs and spices it may be found with tea-making supplies. Because lavender is a popular item in potpourri and other handicraft products, it is important to make sure that flowers purchased for cooking have been grown for that purpose (they should be labelled "culinary lavender" or "food grade"). As the scent of lavender is quite pungent it should be used sparingly, though it can be added to vinegars or to summer jellies and preserves.
	Lavender was burned as an incense to disinfect early hospitals and it was sometimes used in the combination of compounds that made up smelling salts. Today, the floral, pine-like scent of lavender is a popular fragrance in soaps, perfumes and potpourri mixtures.