Hi, Allie McMurphy here and it's hard to believe it's May already. May means gearing up for the start of a new season. I'm hard at work prepping the Historic McMurphy Hotel and Fudge Shop. We have workers out freshening the paint as we air out the rooms and scrub the place down from top to bottom.

Tulips are blooming and soon it will be lilac festival time. I'm excited to watch the ferry boats come and go and the horses begin their work pulling wagons of goods.

Gardeners arrive to make the yards and gardens perfect. Park rangers walk the trails and ensure everything is ready for a safe and fun summer season.


I'm thinking spring flowers and decided to make lavender fudge. It's a delicate flavor and quite pretty. I make both white chocolate and dark chocolate lavender fudge.

Here's a recipe to try for yourself:

You'll need culinary lavender which you can order on line or find in the spice section of places like Whole Foods.

1 tablespoon of culinary lavender finely ground.
2 1/2 cups of either white chocolate chips or semisweet chocolate chips (16 ounces) - be aware that white chocolate cooks faster and has a lighter flavor.
14 ounces of sweetened condensed milk
and 3 tablespoons of butter

1 teaspoon of unground culinary lavender for decoration

Pour the sweetened condensed milk into a medium microwave safe bowl and add the chocolate. Microwave on high for 3-4 minutes, I stop and stir every minute. You want the chocolate to melt and the mixture to be smooth and very hot. Add butter and microwave one more minute. Stir. Add ground lavender.

Prepare an 8x8 inch pan by buttering it on all sides and bottom. Pour the fudge into the pan and smooth the top. Sprinkle with the unground lavender. Cool in the refrigerator until set. Remove from pan and cut into 1-inch squares. Enjoy! To store, place them in an air-tight container.

Happy Spring!

 What is your favorite way to celebrate Spring?