Mediterranean Nachos
Nachos speak my love language. Chips, cheese, beans, I mean, c'mon! When I found a recipe for a mediterranean version, I couldn't get to the grocery store fast enough. Here is my own little spin on them. They are crunchy and creamy. The marinated beans are so satisfying. You will be so happy with this dish. Trust me.



Ingredients: 

3 Pitas
2 cans garbanzo beans
1/2 cup greek yogurt
3 tablespoons tahini
2 tablespoons water
4 tablespoons olive oil
2 garlic cloves
1 onion, diced
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon coriander seeds 
1 cup chicken stock
1 cucumber, peeled and diced
1/4 cup feta cheese
1/2 cup arugula 
juice of 1 lemon
zest of 1 lemon
salt and pepper


Directions: 

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large oven safe pan on the stove. Add your onions and saute until soft and cooked through. Add your cumin, paprika, coriander, garlic, and lemon zest. Drain and rinse your beans. Add your beans and stock to the pan and boil for 1 minute. Add 1 tsp salt and pepper. Cover and bake in oven for 15 minutes.

Cut your pitas into triangles and separate the sides from one another. brush each side with olive oil, sprinkle with salt, bake in oven along side your beans for about 10 minutes until golden and crispy. 

Mix your tahini, water, lemon juice, 1 minced garlic clove, and your greek yogurt. Salt and pepper as needed. 

Layer your chips on a plate. Top with beans, tahini sauce, cucumber, feta, and arugula. Serve immediately and have a party in your mouth!





Insta Friday June Week 3
Welcome to another addition of "Insta Friday" here on the Lavender Apple Blog. My personal favorite on this post today is of course the post of Milo in the sheriff hat. What a big old softie. Have a wonderful weekend!





A photo posted by Lavender Apple (@the.lavender.apple) on












Hashbrown Waffles with Bacon & Eggs
My husband loves when we have breakfast for dinner. Its probably because he is usually so rushed in the morning, a bagel and a banana is all he ever has time for. There is just something so satisfying about hash browns, bacon, eggs. It just warms the soul. Well today's recipe is a fun little twist on a traditional breakfast dish. It was a nice way to make "breakfast" even more special when served at dinner time. 


The trick here is very simple, you make your hash browns in your waffle maker! I loved this idea because hash browns can actually be pretty tricky. Mine always seem to stick to my pan, they burn easily, and never are crunchy enough for me. Well using the waffle iron was so simple and they turned out beautifully!

Ingredients: (Serves 2) 
4 potatoes 
2 eggs
6 slices of bacon
fresh parsley as garnish
salt and pepper

 First, peel and grate your potatoes in a cheese grater. Use the smallest grate side for crispier hash browns. Once grated, use a towel or paper towels and squeeze out all the excess moisture from your potatoes. You may have to squeeze out the moisture several times until they feel dry. Add some salt and pepper to your potatoes. You could add garlic salt, onion salt, tyme, parsley, whatever herbs or spices you like to use in your hash browns. Spray your waffle maker with cooking oil. Place your hash browns on your waffle iron and press down. Depending on how hot your waffle maker gets, and how crispy you like your hash browns, cooking time here can take 8-10 minutes. While this is crisping up, cook your bacon on medium heat in a frying pan until nice and crisp. Set the bacon out to dry on some paper towels, then chop into bite sized pieces. Fry an egg sunny side up until the white is set and the yoke is still runny. 

Once all your components are ready, simply assemble them on top of one another. 


This is a lovely crispy dish. Nice and salty from the bacon with a fun crispy crunch from the bacon. The runny egg yolk just takes everything over the top. Yum yum. Hope you enjoy this playful take on breakfast!


The 2nd Prettiest Herb
Its obvious that here at The Lavender Apple Farm that we think that lavender is the most gorgeous herb invented. Its' beautiful purple buds, gorgeous round plants, relaxing scent, its just everything. Which is why I was so surprised the other day when Peggy plucked something else from her garden that i was absolutely smitten with. 


These are chives! Please tell me I'm not the only idiot who had no idea how absolutely gorgeous these blossoms were? 


Isn't this the stuff that Thumber gets in trouble for only eating the blossoms off of in Bambi? 


Well I had no idea chives were this amazingly beautiful, and I thought we should spread the word. All of our herb gardens would be beautified by this zesty little green and purple plant. I know I'm going out to plant some in my garden right now. 

What are some of your favorite chive recipes? Sunset Magazine just did a great spread of ideas that you can see here

I'm currently loving this one for summer: 

This one for snack time: 

And this one for a summer BBQ: 

Lets go get our chive on!