Tuesday, February 12, 2008

Valentine's Day Sugar Herb Hearts






Need a Last Minute Gift for your Valentine? I had heard about sugar hearts being sold at tea houses and wanted to try it myself. What I found is that it is an elegant way to use herbs for flavor. For the first hearts I made I added ground rose hips in an attempt to give the hearts a pink color. That didn’t work so I added cinnamon and clove as well. They are more brown than pink, but very yummy. I also made lavender hearts, viola hearts and rose petal hearts. The rose petal are my favorite, but next time I might cut down on the amount of red rose petals to give a more pastel color. Here is how to make them:

1 cup sugar
1 tablespoon dried herbs

Put these together in a blender for several seconds. Remove and put in a shallow bowl. Add a scant 1 tablespoon of water and mix well. It should not be wet but rather just damp. That dampness will hold the sugar together. Note that the color will darken slightly with water. Press the dampened sugar into molds and let set overnight. I used plastic tray of heart molds intended for candy making. Turn the molds upside down and tap the hearts out. Use hearts as a decorative way to serve sugar with your tea or give them as candy treats which is what my family will get for Valentine’s Day.

5 comments:

Tina Sams said...

Cindy! Those are just gorgeous. And so decadent... Now I'll have to try it. Thanks!

violetlady said...

I have some pre-made rose, violet and lavender sugar. Maybe this will work for the little hearts.

Geri said...

What an amazingly great idea! I can see how this would be a major hit at a party.

La Tea Dah said...

What a lovely idea!!!! Thank you for sharing it!

LaTeaDah

Anonymous said...

What a sweet treat!

Marie x

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