Spotlight on the Farm: The Carousel Farm, Bucks County, PA

Niko Christou is turning back the hands of time ... and we're all benefiting. In 2000, he and his partner David purchased a beautiful old stone house and barn on 30 acres in a rural area outside of Philadelphia that, like many, is sprouting housing developments. The farm, first established in 1748, has had many lives over the centuries, starting as a dairy farm, later a horse farm and, in the mid-20th century, an exotic animal farm. When Niko and David purchased the property, the fields had lain fallow for years. Instead of selling off portions of the property for development, Niko is reinvigorating the land and has brought the farm back to life.

After a trip to Provence in 2003, Niko was inspired to grow lavender. No small decision given the fact that he's a photographer by trade and, while his family had gardens in Cyprus where he grew up, Niko is not a farmer. Well, at least he wasn't. Three years after putting his first plants into the ground, Niko has acre upon acre of beautiful purple flowers that are thriving under his care.

Lavender has been an important crop for centuries. As we do today, the ancient Greeks, Romans and Egyptians used it medicinally, as a food and a perfume. Studies have shown that lavender is a natural anti-microbial agent, hence its use in so many soaps and creams, as well as a sedative.

But don't relegate lavender to the bathroom; it's also wonderful in the kitchen. Lavender can be used either fresh or dried, but make sure that any lavender that you cook with is organic—lavender sold for dried arrangements and crafts can have dangerous levels of pesticides. The fresh flowers have a milder flavor and can be used as a garnish for green salads, fruit salads and grilled vegetables. They can be tossed into grain pilafs and sprinkled over lamb or fish. Fresh leaves and stems have a flavor reminiscent of rosemary and can be substituted for rosemary in most recipes.

When you bring fresh lavender home, place it in a vase with a bit of water, and keep it refrigerated until you are ready to use it. The flowers and stems should be rinsed gently in cold water just prior to using them. Dried lavender flowers look like little purple seeds and are generally ground into a fine powder before being used to flavor cakes, cookies and other confections. You can even toss a few dried flowers into a pot of tea.

Like all small family farmers, Niko must wear many hats. He runs the farm, tends the lavender plants, produces essential lavender oil and hydrosol in the barn, oversees the manufacture of the soaps, lotions and other products, markets the lavender locally and on the web and runs the market at the farm on Saturdays. And if that weren't enough, Niko and his crew, weed, prune and harvest the lavender by hand. The payoff is a lavender-covered hillside that is stunningly beautiful, smells amazing and provides safe (pesticide- and insecticide-free) forage for natural pollinators such as bees and butterflies.

Niko harvests lavender from July through the middle of October, so there is still time to get out to the farm to enjoy its stunning beauty. The Carousel Organic Lavender Farm is located in Bucks County at 5966 Mechanicsville Road in Mechanicsville, PA (90 minutes outside of Manhattan and 45 minutes north of Philadelphia) and the farm is open to the public on Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., or you can tour the farm online at www.carouselfarmlavender.com. Either way you should take some lavender home with you and get into the kitchen to make one of Niko's favorite recipes.

Lavender Vinaigrette
By Niko Christou
This dressing is wonderful over green salads, cooked vegetables, grilled chicken or fish.

Ingredients
1-1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup honey
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
3/4 cup fresh cilantro
2 tablespoons cranberry or grape juice concentrate
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon fresh lavender flowers

Method
Combine the vinegar, honey, salt, cilantro and juice concentrate in a small bowl. Slowly whisk in the olive oil. Taste and adjust seasoning is necessary. Garnish with fresh lavender flowers.

Lavender Sugar
By Niko Christou
Use as a topping for cookies, muffins, colorful fruit salads and shortcakes.

Ingredients
dried lavender buds, as needed
granulated sugar, as needed
1 quart mason jar, with lid

Method
Pour sugar into the bottom of the jar in a 1-inch thick later. Sprinkle lavender buds on top of the sugar, forming a 1/4-inch layer of dried lavender buds. Repeat the layers until the jar is full. Cover and allow to sit for 10 days. Use as is or remove lavender by sifting.

Quick Lavender Sugar
By Niko Christou
When time is of the essence, this quick method for making lavender sugar works very well.

Ingredients
1 tablespoon dried lavender
2 tablespoons granulated sugar

Method
Use a clean coffee grinder and grind the lavender and sugar together.

Lavender Lemonade
By Niko Christou

Ingredients
10-ounce glass filled with ice
1 lemon, washed and cut in half
3-4 tablespoons Lavender Sugar
cold water
fresh lavender blossoms for garnish

Method
Squeeze half of the lemon into the glass filled with ice and drop the squeezed lemon into the glass. Add the lavender sugar and enough water to fill the glass to the top. Stir (or cover and shake) for a minute. Slice a 1/8 thick piece of lemon and place on top of ice. Decorate with a pinch of lavender.

Lavender Sugar Cookies
By Niko Christou
Ingredients
1 cup butter
1/2 cup lavender sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
2 cups all-purpose flour
additional lavender sugar, as needed

Method
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Cream butter and sugar together until fluffy. Add salt and flour and mix to combine. Chill until firm. Form chilled dough into 1-inch balls and roll in lavender sugar. Place on an un-greased cookie sheet, and bake for 10 -12 minutes. Cool before stacking.

Lavender Ice Cream
By Niko Christou

Ingredients
1 cup milk
2 cups heavy cream
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup lavender sugar, pureed in a clean coffee grinder to a find powder

Method
Pour chilled mixture into ice cream freezer—and churn!