Lavender Shortbread Cookies are as lovely as they come. They are full of buttery goodness, lightly sweet and have the best flavor and scent. This unique cookie is a winner.
I love a good shortbread so I am already on board with this cookie but then you add lavender and the taste just explodes. It is such a fun twist on a 5 ingredient classic cookie.
Lavender Shortbread Cookies
Lavender isn’t something that is used to cook with very often so I have a few suggestions. I would HIGHLY recommend using English or North American lavender for this recipe. French lavender is a little too acidic and pine flavoured for this recipe. Chopping the lavender buds releases the oil extract making for a more fragrant cookie. You will be pleasantly surprised how simple and subtly lavender this cookies taste.
Shortbread cookies call for an ample amount of butter. Due to this high amount of butter in the recipe, place the cookie sheet in the fridge prior to baking will help to keep the butter from melting in the oven and retain the size and shape of the cookie. This is a great shortbread tip!
Ingredients
- Butter: the backbone of any good shortbread cookie, don’t use margarine here. A good butter will also go a long way.
- Powdered sugar: this helps the cookies to stay crisp and also adds to the structure of the cookie.
- Culinary lavender buds: read the post for tips about this, look for English lavender and not French
- Vanilla extract
- Cornstarch: this is added to give the cookies that soft melt in your mouth flavor
- Flour: we’re just using a standard all-purpose flour here, nothing special needed
Recipe Instructions
- First, beat together the butter and icing sugar until smooth.
- Add the lavender buds, salt and vanilla. You can roughly chop the lavender if you would like a more fragrant cookie.
- Slowly add a little bit of the flour and corn starch, alternating between the two, and beat until it starts to stick together, about 3 minutes.
- Roll the dough on a floured surface until it is approximately a quarter of an inch thick.
- Using a cookie cutter, cut out your desired shape and place on a pre-lined cooking sheet. Be sure to leave about an inch of space between them.
- Sprinkle the sanding sugar over the tops of the cookies.
- Place the cookie sheet with the raw cookies in the fridge to cool a little while your oven is preheating. Preheat the oven to 300 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Bake for 14-16 minutes or until the edges just start to brown. Cool on the baking sheet for 5-8 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack to cool completely.
Frequently Asked Questions
These cookies can be stored in an airtight container on the counter for up to a week. You can also freeze these cookies in an airtight container for up to 6 months.
You can find both lavender extract and dried lavender in the specialty foods section of the grocery store. I have also had success finding lavender on Amazon.
It is a good idea to chill the shortbread dough before baking. Shortbread has a lot of butter in them so to reduce the spread-refrigerating the shortbread dough or the cookie sheet is a great idea.
When making shortbread cookies you want the butter to be softened but not melted. If the butter it is soft it will incorporate easily into the shortbread mixture.
More Recipes
- World Peace Shortbread Cookies
- Chocolate Dipped Caramel Shortbread Cookies
- Easter Shortbread Sandwich Cookies
- Pistachio Key Lime Shortbread Cookies
- Lemon Shortbread Cookies
If you’ve tried this Lavender Shortbread Cookie recipe or any other recipe on Barbara Bakes, then don’t forget to rate the recipe and leave me a comment below! I would love to hear about your experience making it. And if you snapped some pictures of it, share it with me on Instagram so I can repost on my stories.
Lavender Shortbread Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup unsalted butter at room temperature
- ½ cup powdered sugar
- 2 teaspoons culinary lavender buds
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup cornstarch
- 1 ½ cups all purpose flour plus a little extra for rolling
- sanding sugar for topping optional
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl, beat together the butter and icing sugar until smooth.
- Add the lavender buds, salt and vanilla. You can roughly chop the lavender if you would like a more fragrant cookie. Continue beating until the lavender is fully combined.
- Slowly add a little bit of the flour and corn starch, alternating between the two, and beat until it starts to stick together, about 3 minutes.
- Roll the dough on a floured surface until it is approximately a quarter of an inch thick.
- Using a cookie cutter, cut out your desired shape and place on a pre-lined cooking sheet. Be sure to leave about an inch of space between them.
- Sprinkle the sanding sugar over the tops of the cookies.
- Place the cookie sheet with the raw cookies in the fridge to cool a little while your oven is preheating. Preheat the oven to 300 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Bake for 14-16 minutes or until the edges just start to brown. Cool on the baking sheet for 5-8 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack to cool completely.
Notes
- I would HIGHLY recommend using English or North American lavender for this recipe. French lavender is a little too acidic and pine flavoured for this recipe.
- Chopping the lavender buds releases the oil extract making for a more fragrant cookie.
- Due to the high amount of butter in the recipe, placing the cookie sheet in the fridge prior to baking will help to keep the butter from melting in the oven and retain the size and shape of the cookie.
- These cookies can be stored in an airtight container on the counter for up to a week.
- You can freeze these cookies in an airtight container for up to 6 months.
Nutrition
You will be hard-pressed to find a cookie that is more fitting for Spring than Lavender Shortbread Cookies. They are buttery and rich with the most delightful hints of lavender.
Chris
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