Lavender Simple Syrup

One of my favorite drinks is an iced lavender oat milk latte. It's a mouthful, but a delicious one nonetheless. Unfortunately, they are a scarce delicacy. You may be able to find one coffee shop in town that sells any kind of lavender drink. I took it upon myself to learn how to make one of these beauties.

Fist off, I am not a "coffee" person. I do love my "coffee" friends, though, because without them I wouldn't know how to order at a fancy coffee shop. With that said, this is definitely NOT going to teach you the artisan way of making coffee. I actually use the microwave to heat up my milk - I know. This is just an easy recipe to make yummy lavender flavored things.

I started with a hot lavender oat milk latte. I don't happen to have food-grade lavender on had so I'm using my lavender essential oil (which is 100% pure from here) instead. A couple recipes online suggested adding one to two drops lavender to the milk. The nicest way I can describe that was disgusting. When I drank the frothed oat milk on top, all I tasted was the oil. I also decided that I don't like oat milk hot. I ended up dumping that cup out. I tried just one drop in 2% milk (because that's what I have) and it was bearable. I didn't enjoy it as I felt I should, so I decided adding the oil to the milk wasn't going to work. One drop was still too much for one cup.

This may not resonate with you "coffee" people, but I have to have some kind of sweetener in my coffee. SO adding the lavender to a simple syrup became my next try. It was actually extremely easy to make and gave me more control on how much Lavender I added to each drink. It also works for cold coffee, tea, and lemonade as well!

Now, if you have one of those fancy espresso machines, go ahead and make your cup as normal. If you're like me and only have one of those ancient coffee pots, fear not! You can get, in my opinion, a just as good tasting latte if you use a strong dark coffee.  Since I was only making one cup at a time, I heated water in the microwave and placed a coffee filter over my cup. to "brew" the coffee. To froth the milk, I heated it up in the microwave and put it in a blender for about 30 seconds. I'm not positive if this is a correct method or not, but it worked for me since I don't have a milk frother.

Lavender Simple Syrup

Ingredients:

• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup water
• 1-2 drops of lavender essential oil (depending on strength preference)

Directions:

1. Add the sugar and water in a saucepan over medium-low heat.
2. Whisk until the sugar dissolves and the mixture starts to simmer
3. Remove from heat mix in lavender essential oil
4. Let cool completely and store in a sealed container in the fridge

Add the syrup to your drink one table spoon at a time until you like the strength.  I LOVE it in a cup of hot tea! I added 3 spoon fulls to a cup of earl grey tea and it was perfect for me! Coffee is a stronger flavor and takes a bit more syrup. It's all based on preference though.

The syrup is a great way to disperse the drops of lavender so you're not getting a lavender explosion in your mouth. Essential Oils are extremely concentrated and a little goes a very long way. If you're not a fan of sugar, you could also take a toothpick, touch it to your oil and stir it in your drink. That's a quick way to get less than a drop. 

Please be cautious consuming essential oils. Not all of them are created equally. Please do research on where you are buying your oils and make sure they are 100% pure, natural, and unadulterated. Always check with a healthcare professional if you have concerns. 

•This post contains affiliate links.•