Hi everyone!! I've missed you all enormously. I'm sorry for dropping off this past few weeks, but life has been rather hectic.
We were back in Wisconsin for a bit this fall while my husband finished up his PhD, during which time my poor old back, damaged in a bad car accident a few years back, flared up and left me with excruciating pain, and then my dear old grandmother passed away - peacefully after a good long life, but sad for me nevertheless. I'm also frantically trying to finish my fourth novel. So blogging has been a little low on the totem pole of priorities.
But I'm here now, with a lovely little recipe I've been meaning to share for a while - delicately flavoured lavender shortbread / sugar cookies, made with lavender from my own little deck pot.
I suppose I ought to apologize for sharing them, since I suspect you'll find it hard not to gobble them up, but they're too good to keep all for myself!
My lavender didn't bloom much this summer, it's actually blooming more now that the weather is cool and rainy! Since I didn't have blooms, I used fresh French lavender leaves.
French lavender is a little different from the usual English lavender. Perhaps a bit more delicate in cold winters, I love the fronds on the leaves, and the blooms are a little different.
See the bright leaves, with their delicate ridges, like mini ferns?
Pretty, aren't they?
I did have a couple of blooms, which I ground up with sugar and used to make the icing. So when I dipped the cookies in the icing, I got little lavender bits on top of the cookies.
Also very pretty.
Cookie Recipe (makes approximately 70 cookies)
I used my simple Gluten Free Shortbread Cookie recipe for these shortbread cookies, ditched the orange blossom water, and added 2 Tbsp of finely chopped fresh, pesticide-free lavender leaves.
To make cookies: I also used my Wilton Cookie Press to make the spritz cookies, and dipped them in icing.
Hint: When making shortbread cookies, it is best to work with cold, ungreased pans. Keep pans in refrigerator until ready to spritz cookies, then return to fridge for a few minutes to firm cookies before baking.
Cool cookies before icing.
Lemon and Lavender Icing Recipe
3/4 cup icing sugar
1 Tbsp chopped lavender leaves or blossoms
pinch of salt
2 tsp lemon juice
Water as needed
1. To make the lavender sugar, whirl lavender, icing sugar, and salt together in a food processor, until lavender is finely diced and almost indistinguishable.
2. In a large bowl, mix sugar and lemon juice together to make a thick icing that is just runny enough to enable dipping cookies into. Adjust sugar and water as needed.
3. Dip or drizzle icing over cookies, and let icing harden before moving. These are best kept refrigerated for up to two weeks.
To Use Lavender Blooms or Leaves?
I know some people prefer using blossoms over leaves, but since I didn't have many blooms I used the fresh leaves, which were lovely and delicate in flavour, and I wouldn't hesitate to do so again. They have plenty of flavour, and there are a lot more of them than blossoms!
If using dried blossoms, I would try using half the amount I've listed in the recipes above.
Looking for more Gluten Free Lavender recipes?
Check out my Gluten Free Lavender Bread recipe.
Looking for more Gluten Free Shortbread Cookies?
Check out these two favourites:
How do you use Lavender?
Do you flavour your shortbread cookies?
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