TEXAS "You are Beautiful!"

I am back from Belton, Texas and The Mother Earth News Fair. It was the best weekend and I met so many super nice people. Thank you to everyone that came to my talks, workshops and just stopped to talk. It was a great fair with some really good speakers (I even got to go to a few.)

We had a nice "Lavender Breakfast" before the fair started and I could not have done it without Marc and Nancy Walton of Xanadu Acres and Brad Fast of Lavender Cove Lavender Farms. If you are interested in growing lavender in Texas I would definitely look into joining the Texas Lavender Association.

Here is the Scone recipe we served:

Lavender Scones

3 cups flour

3 /4 cup sugar

1 Tablespoon baking powder

1 teaspoon dreid lavender buds

1 teaspoon salt

1 /2 teaspoon baking soda

3 /4 cup cold butter (cut into cubes)

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 cup buttermilk

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. In a food processor, or by hand mix together all of the dry ingredients. Add the cold butter and process or mix by hand until your mixture resembles coarse meal. Add the vanilla to the buttermilk. In a large bowl, add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir until you have a "rough" dough. Transfer to a lightly flowered surface and knead a few times, until the dough forms. Divide the dough in half, and pat into two 8 inch rounds. Cut the rounds into 8 wedges and place the wedges on a large cookie sheet. Bake for 13-15 minutes until golden brown. Transfer to a wire race and let cool.

Yield: 16 scones

My new workbook "Beautiful Luffa" also launched at the Texas Fair! I got to see it for the first time and so did everyone else. I truly appreciate everyone who came to the workshop. We did a lot (maybe too much) in an hour but I think everyone walked away with the knowledge that this plant really is more than a skin scrubber!

Here is the sugar scrub recipe we made in class:

Soothing Luffa Sugar Scrub

1 cup raw sugar

1 /4 cup almond oil

1 /2 teaspoon vitamin E oil

2 Tablespoons grated luffa

Mix together all ingredients and spoon into a clean container. To use: Stand in the shower or tub and massage a tablespoon or two of the scrub all over your body to gently exfoliate and moisturize your skin. Rinse well afterward. If you feel you need more moisture, follow up more almond oil or your favorite body lotion.

Yield: 8 ounces

If you missed the fair or want a luffa book -- I am home now and have plenty!! just click on the buy books tab and I will sign and send you one -- I also have some seeds I will send out as long as they last!

You are beautiful!!

xoxo Janice

Here are some more shots from the Fair

The turkey is Texas state champion and has the belt buckle to prove it! I also met Marty Rainey from "Homestead Rescue" and Emma Biggs an amazing teen gardener from Canada.