Lemon Lavender Shortbread Cookies
Author:Beautifully rich, Lemon Lavender Shortbread that is full of zesty lemon flavour with delicious subtle bursts of floral lavender in every bite. It litreally melts in your mouth!
Ingredients
- 42 grams ( ⅓ cup) powdered sugar
- 100g (½ cup) vegan butter or coconut oil , should be solid and chilled
- ¼ to ½ teaspoon fine sea salt , I like these cookies with a very slight salty edge so use half a teaspoon of salt. If you are sensitive to salty flavours then just use 1/4 teaspoon. Do not use table salt in this recipe.
- ½ to 1 teaspoon culinary lavender buds , the more you use the stronger the lavender flavour will be (rosemary or thyme work well instead!)
- zest of 2 lemons
- 165g (1⅓ cup) all purpose flour , (plain flour in the UK)
- up to 3 tablespoons plant milk , try not to any. Only add it if you really cannot get the dough to come together without
- optional coarse granulated sugar for sprinkling
INSTRUCTIONS
- Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C) and line a cookie sheet with parchment paper or silicone baking mat.
- Combine the powdered sugar, vegan butter/coconut oil and salt in a bowl. You can do this by hand with a fork (mash then beat it really well until you can no longer see any powdered sugar and it's light and fluffy) or with an electric hand mixer. Mix together until fluffy.
- Add the lavender flowers and lemon zest and stir to combine.
- Sieve in the flour and mix by hand until everything is combined. I start by mashing in the flour with a fork then stir together with a spoon at the end a bit. Do not over mix or use electric beaters here.Too much mixing will affect the texture of the finished shortbread.
- Add the milk only if you need to to bring the dough together. The dough should be slightly crumbly but hold together if you squeeze it together in your hand. The drier you can get away with keeping the dough and the less you handle it, the better the texture of your shortbread.
- Lightly dust a surface with flour and shape your dough gently into a ball. Roll out to about 3 - 4 mm thick then use a cookie cutter or mason jar lid to cut into shapes. The amount of cookies you get will depend on the size of your cookie cutter
- Place the cut cookies gently on the prepared cookie sheet, sprinkle with a little granulated sugar then refrigerate for at least 15 minutes until firm.
- Remove from the fridge and bake for 10 to 12 minutes.They will start turning a little golden around the edges when done but will still feel soft in the middle. They will crisp up as they cool. Everyones oven is different so time will vary slightly for everyone.
- Leave the cookies on the baking tray for a couple of minutes then carefully transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Unlike some cookies these are best eaten when completely cooled so be patient!
NOTES
Storing - Cool cookies completely on a wire rack before storing in an airtight container. They should keep well for a couple of weeks.
Cookies can also be frozen:
- Uncooked: Make the cookies as directed and lay them out on a lined baking tray. Place the entire tray uncovered into your freezer. As soon as the cookies are solid you can remove them from the tray and place in a freezer-safe container for up to 3 months. Bake as directed but add on an extra 2 minutes cooking time.
- Cooked: Place the cookies on a baking sheet and freeze until solid (this will prevent them from sticking to each other in the freezer). Then place in a freezer-safe container or freezer bag with parchment paper between any layers. Freeze for up to 3 months. To thaw cookies, place on a wire rack and let stand at room temperature for about an hour.
NUTRITION
Serving: 1cookie | Calories: 83kcal | Carbohydrates: 8g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 5g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Sodium: 29mg | Potassium: 9mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 1IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 2mg | Iron: 1mg
