Lavender Cheesecake Cupcakes

Makes about 18 mini cheesecakes

Crust:
1 Cup chocolate graham crackers crushed
3 T unsalted butter melted 2 T sugar

Preheat oven to 350
Mix all ingredients together and press aprox 1 T of the mixture in the bottom of a muffin tin lined with cupcake liners. Bake at 350 degrees for 7 minutes. Let them cool while preparing your cheesecake mixture.

Filling:

1 Lb of cream cheese (two 8 oz packages) at room temperature
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup honey
2 eggs at room temperature slighty beaten
1/2 C Sour cream
pinch of salt
1 1/2 T fresh Lavender, or 3/4 t dried lavender (food grade!)

Reduce the oven to 275 degrees.
Crush lavender in a spice grinder, food processor, or with a mortor and pestal to release the oils inside. Set aside.
Beat the cream cheese at medium speed in a mixer until smooth. Add the sugar and honey and mix until combined. Slowly add the eggs one at a time while the mixer is still running, scraped down the sides of the bowl as needed. Add sour cream, salt, and lavender and mix until combined, do not overmix. Fill cupcake liners until almost full (One large ice cream scoop works perfectly for this)

Bake for about 20 minutes or until the sides are set, but the centers are still slightly wobbly. Cool on wire racks, then transfer to fridge and let cool for at least 4 hours.

Whipped Cream:

1/2 Cup heavy whipping cream
2-3 T honey

Whip the cream until peaks start to form. Add the honey and whip until there are fairly stiff peaks. You can add more or less honey to taste depending on the sweetness of the honey you are using.

Candied Violets:

Violets, Pansies, or other edible flowers (make sure they are fresh and have no pesticides on them)
Pasturized white of one egg or meringue powder prepared according to package instructions
sugar or superfine sugar

Let the flowers soak for about 30 minutes in a bowl of water, drain and let the flowers dry on a paper towel. Blot any left-over drops of water with a paper towel.
Dip flowers one by one in the egg white. (if using a real egg, slightly beat it with a fork to break up any large parts, you can add a little water to thin it down.)
Sprinkle sugar on freshly dipped flowers and allow to dry on wax or parchment paper for 12-36 hours. Store in a cool dry tightly sealed container for up to one year if properly stored.