Lavender ‘n Strawberry Blondies

Delicately Delicious. That’s All.

Oftentimes when I think out recipes, people around me tend to greet me with frowns rather than excitement. I get it. Sometimes they are very bad ideas, like these. But sometimes the crazy in me works magic, and this was one of those times. I love the idea of using fresh fruit in something as rich as a Blondie (a white chocolate Brownie).  I believe every flavour needs to be balanced out. I know how pompous that sounds. But just close your eyes for a moment and imagine: Sickly sweet caramel-like white chocolate broken by bursts of fresh strawberry, rounded by a light crunch of sea salt. Delicious. Now as the Blondie has passed the palate something else remains, a light floral note singing sweetly at the back of your throat, just subtly lingering as a reminder of a perfect balance. Gosh. This is pure poetry.

Besides the long-drawn flavour explanation, these treats are surprisingly easy to make as they consist mainly of sugar, chocolate and butter (the holy triumvirate?). Based on the fact that I don’t entirely trust my lavender bush, I used dried lavender heads but I would recommend fresh should be the way to go as it will have a much stronger and delicious flavour. If strawberries aren’t your thing, blueberries, gooseberries or most other fruits will make a great accompaniment. Just remember it has to go with white chocolate which is particularly sweet, so try to use a fruit that has an acidic component.

                     

Ingredients:

3  Slabs (total 300g) of good quality white chocolate

1/3 Cup butter

2/3 Cup sugar

2 Eggs

A dash of vanilla extract

1 Cup Flour

1/4 Teaspoon baking powder

1/4 Teaspoon salt

2 Cups fresh strawberries, hulled and halved

2 Tablespoons ground lavender (heads and leaves, no stalks)

A grind of Sea salt

Method:

Firstly, preheat oven to 180 degrees. Chop the chocolate roughly. Set half of it with the butter in a double boiler a bowl set over (but not touching) a pot of gently simmering water. Melt chocolate and butter, stirring constantly, until smooth. Remove from heat and stir in sugar. If your batter appears to separate, it’s okay, don’t freak out. Whisk in eggs and vanilla until smooth. Add flour, baking powder, lavender and salt and stir until just incorporated. Fold in strawberries and the remainder of the chocolate. Pour into buttered baking tray. Bake for about 20-30 minutes until a skewer comes out clean. Let cool completely and lightly scatter with  sea salt. Serve with icing sugar and fresh strawberries.

Happy eating! 😉

Prep time: 20 minutes

Cooking time: 20-30 minutes