Great find.

On a bored whim the other day, I dug out my old creme brulee torch (what? doesn't everyone have one?) I then headed to Barnes and Noble to finally buy a book I've stumbled upon many times before but always passed up.

I skimmed through the pages and pages of creme brulee recipes until I found the perfect one. The recipe that seemed impossible, yet amazingly yummy: Lemon lavender creme brulee.

Now, I'm no Wolfgang Puck, but I most certainly got into my head that not only could I pull off this creme brulee, but I was also going to find lavender in the middle of February. So, I grabbed my hubby and headed to the first place I could think of that carries the most obscure of food things... Houston's own Farmers Market. I seriously cannot get enough of the Farmer's Market (located off Airline) and that will have to be another entry all to its own.

We walked high and low throughout the market, sampling the freshest fruits and eyeing the greenest vegetables that Houston has to offer this time of year, until I came across a spice booth. Not only did I walk away with a small treasure (whole vanilla bean pods) but also a bag full of dried lavender!

We rushed home and I quickly got to work mixing the cream, simmering the lavender, zesting fresh lemon, and whisking egg yolks into submission. All the while my kitchen was overflowing with the smell of the most phenomenal dessert yet to come.

The hardest part was the waiting...waiting the 45 minutes for the perfectly filled ceramic ramekins to bake in the oven, and then then agonizing 2 hours it took to chill in the fridge. Then came the most exciting part of any creme brulee experience: using the torch to caramelize granulated sugar sprinkled on top of the custard. Its almost an empowering experience to take control over the tiny undeserving cup and burn its top layer into a solid disk of sugared glass.

When it was all said and done, my lavender lemon creme brulee smelled slightly like my favorite candle scent, but tasted better than I ever could have imagined. I was reminded why sometimes the best things to eat are the ones that take the longest to put together.

And of course, in my unpatient fury. I forgot to take a picture of the finished product. Hopefully this google'd version will suffice.

And in the meantime, when I want to fufill my desire to burn something and have a quick treat, I have found that the combination of my creme brulee torch and a marshmallow stuck at the end of a fork makes an excellent psuedo-smore.

My passion.

Passion fruit.

Until my honeymoon, I always thought passion fruit was merely a fruity scent. Something only popular in candles and shampoo. Once in St. Lucia, I was taken aback by this strange fruit with an even stranger consistency. The passion fruit itself almost looks like a tropical caviar, and as soon as you scoop out your first bite... you rethink everything that you have ever eaten before.

With your first spoonful, your taste-buds dance with the combination of sweet and tart, with a surprising crunchy bite. Explosions of flavor!

Every morning in St. Lucia, I would bounce into the seaside restaurant, grabbing the first couple passion fruits I found on my way. I'd sit and slowly scoop and munch....scoop and munch, while looking out into the Caribbean and planning our next adventure for the day. (while also sipping the fresh passion fruit juice made every morning)

I am connected to my favorite memories by the memories of food eaten along the way.

Since my honeymoon, I'd always think about the amazing food I'd found and try to find alternatives at the store. Welch's Passionfruit Juice has been a suitable alternative for the juice, but I've never found passion fruit. I've even thought about ordering some online and having them shipped...until this week.

While walking through my friendly neighborhood HEB (Buffalo Market) I gasped when I found a small pile of passion fruit beside the coconuts! I grabbed two handfuls and quickly filled the closest bag. At $2 each, it was a pricey shopping trip... but by far the highlight of

my week!

I'm actually eating one right now.

scoop and munch....scoop and munch....