These cookies are probably one of the prettiest cookies I have made to date.  However, I’ll be up front, they mostly likely will not be your most delicious.  They are tasty, but with just a few ingredients, they are rather plain, but that hint of lavender adds just enough.  But that’s what people like about a shortbread, you know what you are getting, simple and simple can be quite good.  This recipe takes shortbread to a new level.  When I think shortbread, I think of the Scottish made, “Walker’s Shortbread,” in the red tartan package. Now those are plain, plain, plain, but with a cup of tea, they hit the spot.  The colored sugar, along with the lavender, just elevates these.  

     A few notes about lavender.  Lavender is just one of those flavors that is pleasant and it is not offensive of a smell.  In  France, it is everywhere.  You will even find it adorning truck stops.  As you drive through the South of France, particularly Provence, you’ll still see field after field of it.  I used fresh lavender which I like to grow in window boxes and front porch pots.  You can used dried or lavender flavor, like you can purchase vanilla or almond pure flavoring.  

     On making shortbread, it is a dry dough.  I mention in the text of the recipe, keep that in mind.  You can add two or three Tablespoons of cold water and then after blending in the mixer, dough will still be somewhat dry and you’ll need to piece together the dough into a log, then roll the dough up with the plastic wrap.  

These cookies would be pretty for a spring party or a special occasion like a shower.  

I have used lavender grown in our window box in warmer months and I have purchased lavender from the grocery store too.

Ingredients  

     2 cups unbleached flour, sifted

     1/2 cup or 1 stick unsalted butter, cut butter in cubes for easy blending

     1/8 teaspoon salt

     1/2 cup white granulated sugar

     Lavender either:

          1 teaspoon fresh florets minced

          1/2 teaspoon dried 

          1/4 teaspoon extract

     Sugar Coating

          1 Egg white 

          1/2 cup white granulated sugar, either purchased purple colored or add

          2-3 drops purple food coloring

These really are a treat of a cookie!

Directions

  1.  Either chop the fresh lavender, after washing or crush the dry with a mortar, if using fresh or dry.  
  2. In an electric mixer, cream the butter, salt and sugar, for about 2 minutes, until fluffy.
  3. Add the flour, a little at a time, add the lavender, mixing until crumbly, add 2-3 Tablespoons cold water, knead until combined.  The dough should be soft, but not sticky.  If the dough does seam sticky, add up to a Tablespoon of flour. 
  4. With a large piece of plastic wrap on the counter, shape dough into a log, about 2 inches in diameter. Now cover dough long with plastic wrap.  
  5. Chill the wrapped dough in the freezer from 30 minutes to 1 hour.  
  6. While the dough is chilling, mix up the color sugar, if you can’t find colored at the store.  Stir the sugar and food coloring until color is even.  
  7. Preheat oven to 325 degrees.   
  8. While oven heats, take dough from freezer, unwrap, using a pastry brush,  apply egg white to long* and then roll log into sugar to coat.  
  9. Slice thin rounds of dough and place on a parchment lined cookie beet about 1 1/2-2 inches apart.  
  10. Bake cookies for 10-12 minutes.  Dough will still be light and will continue to bake, once removed from oven. 
  11. Let cool on a cookie rack and then store in an airtight container in a cake dome on the counter .
  12. Enjoy! 
Here’s an option, bake half of the dough and safe the other half to be enjoyed at another time. I save and store the sugar at the same time, as mentioned in directions below.
  1. * I prefer to cut long in half and freeze second long for last minute company or to enjoy at another time, just for fun.  I DO NOT brush with egg wash.  It might be ok, but I’m not sure.  I will store log of dough in the freezer in a zip log bag, log wrapped still in plastic wrap, along with some colored sugar in a sandwich or snack bag.  If you need cookies last minute, preheat oven, brush dough with egg white, roll in purple sugar, slice, bake and enjoy!