Every year we harvest our Lavender.  The first year we planted we were able to harvest ourselves, but as the years have gone by and our lavender has grown we have needed to employ some extra hands.  And these hands belong to some wonderful young people with a lot more energy and stamina than us older folk.  

(Below and above are just a portion of the lavender we harvested this year.)   

After harvesting the lavender from the fields the real work begins.  In order for lavender to keep it's rich color and fragrance it needs to be hung in a cool dark place. 

Next, we take the harvested lavender to our cottage and begin the process of separating, sorting and hanging it.  

After hours and hours of labor, our cottage is full from top to bottom with hundreds upon hundreds of lavender bundles.  They hang in this cool dark place until dry. 

Tomorrow, we'll show you how we get all those thousands of buds off the stems and into our products.  We will also share a delicious recipe for white hot chocolate with a touch of lavender. Yum.

This year we also planted and harvested gorgeous white lavender for the first time.  We are excited to post pictures of this gorgeous and majestic looking variety of lavender.

Fall in Cache Valley is simply spectacular!  Below are some pictures of the old barn located on the dirt road that takes you to our lavender and apple farm.  I also added some gorgeous photos taken of the Logan Canyons. Country living at its best.

Below are some gorgeous pictures that capture the beauty and spectacular views as you drive through the Logan Canyons. If you ever have the opportunity to drive to Cache Valley during the Fall, you will not regret it.

above photo courtesy of John Harvey

above photo courtesy of N.M. Smith

Tis the season to collect all those delicious vine ripe tomatoes and create something fabulous with them.  As you know, I'm a big fan of roasting veggies.  Their flavor becomes more rich through the roasting process.  Each season I roast my tomatoes.  I like to make spaghetti sauce, soups and stews with them.

Roasted Tomato Sauce/Puree Recipe

preheat oven to 400

8 tomatoes

1 small yellow onion

3 cloves garlic

1/3 cup fresh herbs (anything really, parsley, sage, thyme or basil)

3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tbsp Herbs de Provence (optional)

pinch of salt & pepper

Wash and core tomatoes. Cut into quarters.  Add cut onions, garlic and fresh herbs. Toss with olive oil and then add salt and pepper; I also like to add our own blend of Herbs de Provence. Toss your veggies well and place on a cookie sheet, being carful not to crowd.  Roast in oven until all veggies are golden brown.  Take out of oven and cool.  At this point I like to place them in a freezer bag and freeze.  When you want to use them just take them out and un-thaw.

Puree the sauce and add chicken, then pour over pasta.  You won't be sorry you went to the effort to preserve these delicious tomatoes!

  

We here at the Lavender Apple are getting ready for the Holidays and are in the process of putting together a number of gift basket with our products.  

We are also going to make baskets of all prices and varieties. Such as Culinary baskets with things like honey & herbs, Bath & Body baskets with soaps, oils & lotions and Home Goods baskets with lavender sachets, framable cards & essential scented oils and more.  We also want to give our customers the chance to put together their own custom gift baskets.

We are excited for the coming holiday season and are excited to be a part of your experience as you share our organic handpicked lavender and homemade goods with friends and family!