Treat yourself to these delightful Lemon Lavender Cookies! These unique Lavender Cookies are bursting with wonderful, fresh flavors, easy to make, and so cute. Make a batch today!
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If you're looking for creative cookie recipes this holiday season, you're going to LOVE these Lemon Lavender Cookies!
These pretty shortbread cookies have the most amazing smell, but they taste even better! They're tender, buttery, and the lavender-lemon flavor is super delish.
Best of all, while these cookies feel special and kind of fancy, they're actually really easy to make!
Ready to try this yummy recipe for yourself? Then keep reading for all the details!
Ingredients
With the exception of the lavender, this recipe uses really basic ingredients. Here's what you'll need:
- Edible Lavender - These cookies are made with edible lavender buds which provide a wonderful fragrance and flavor. You can find them in gourmet food stores, spice shops, and specialty markets, like Whole Foods and Trader Joe's ... I found my lavender at World Market. Make sure the package is marked "culinary" or "edible".
- Fresh Lemon - You will use both the zest and the juice for these cookies.
- Dough - The shortbread dough that forms the base of these cookies is made with unsalted butter, granulated sugar, kosher salt, vanilla extract, and all-purpose flour.
Simple, right? But so delicious! These tender sugar cookies are perfect Christmas and other holidays like Easter. Once you try them though, you'll want to enjoy them year round ... they'd be perfect with a cup of tea!
You'll Also Need
To make these cookies, you'll need a food processor to make the lemon-lavender sugar, and a stand mixer, plus measuring cups and spoons, to prepare the cookie dough, and a couple baking sheets (these Circulon baking sheets are my fave) to cook them. A zester for the lemon is also a must (this Microplane zester is the BEST and makes the job super easy!).
Tip: to save on cleanup, use parchment paper to line your baking sheets!
How to Make Lemon Lavender Cookies
These tasty Lavender Cookies couldn't be easier to make! You'll find a detailed, printable recipe at the end of the article, but here's a quick overview:
- Make lavender-lemon sugar. To avoid having large pieces of lavender in this recipe, you'll pulse it together with the sugar and the lemon zest in a food processor until it's finely chopped. Make sure to pick through the buds first, and remove any stems or other detritus that you find.
- Cream butter. Combine the butter, sugar mixture, and salt in a stand mixer, then mix until light and fluffy. Once that's done, add the vanilla extract.
- Mix in the flour. You'll add the flour in two parts, blending well after each addition.
- Roll the dough into balls. Take a tablespoon of dough (I use a measuring spoon for this, but you can eyeball it), then roll it between your hands into a ball. Place on baking sheet a couple inches apart.
- Flatten balls. Using your fingers, flatten the dough balls to about ½-inch thick. If any cracks form around the edges, gently press the dough back together.
- Bake cookies. Transfer the cookies to your oven, then bake them just until the bottoms are a light golden brown, about 10 to 12 minutes or so. The tops and sides should not be browned ... use a thin spatula or fork to carefully check the bottoms (they're fragile when hot).
Once your Lemon and Lavender Cookies are done baking, let them cool completely before decorating.
Tip: Make sure to scrape down the mixing bowl and paddle with a spatula occasionally as you mix the cookie dough. That way, everything gets well combined.
Icing the Cookies
The lemon glaze is a variation on my basic Cookie Icing. It's super simple to make, but it adds tons of flavor to the cookies.
- Mix glaze. To prepare the lemon icing, mix the powdered sugar and lemon juice together in a small bowl until smooth.
- Decorate cookies. Place a small teaspoon of glaze on the cookie, then spread using the back of a spoon or a small offset spatula. The glaze will spread slightly, so don't use too much and leave a little border. Once you've added the icing, you can sprinkle a few lavender buds on top if you wish.
Tip: Make sure your cookies are completely cooled before adding the glaze, otherwise it will melt and run. I like to chill my cookies in the refrigerator or freezer for a few minutes first to be on the safe side. If the glaze seems too thin and runs off the cookies, add more powdered sugar.
Storage
Once the glaze has set, store the Lavender Lemon Cookies in an airtight container, where they'll stay fresh for about a week. These pie storage containers work great for cookies and last forever! Add parchment paper between the layers to protect the glaze, if desired.
If you live in a warm climate like me (or if you have a hot kitchen), store your cookies in the refrigerator so the glaze doesn't melt. You may also freeze the cookies in a zip top bag or an airtight container for up to one month (I like to use these handy slider bags).
Related Recipes
Looking for more creative cookie recipe? Try one of these next!
- Cranberry Walnut Cookies
- Maple Pecan Shortbread Cookies
- Curry Shortbread Cookies
- Peppermint Thumbprint Cookies
- Honey Cookies
- Poppyseed Kiss Cookies
- Chewy Ginger Cookies
- White Chocolate Cranberry Cookies
- Coffee Cookies
- Pecan Finger Cookies ... my all-time favorites!
- Stamped Cookies
- Sour Cream Cut Out Cookies
- Peppermint Thumbprint Cookies
Lemon Lavender Cookies
Ingredients
For Cookies:
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons edible lavender, plus more for decorating
- 2 teaspoons lemon zest
- 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
For Glaze:
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 1 ½ tablespoons lemon juice
Instructions
Prepare Cookies:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or lightly spray with nonstick spray. Set aside.
- Combine sugar, lavender, and lemon zest in food processor. Pulse until lavender is finely chopped.
- Using stand mixer, cream butter, lavender-lemon sugar, and salt in mixer until light and fluffy.
- Mix vanilla extract into butter mixture.
- Add flour to butter mixture in two batches, mixing well after each addition.
- Roll 1 tablespoon dough into a ball. Place on baking sheet, then flatten (using fingers) to about ½-inch thick. Repeat with remaining dough, placing cookies about 2-inches apart on pan.
- Bake cookies just until lightly browned on bottom, about 10 to 12 minutes. Let cool completely on baking sheet before decorating.
Prepare Glaze:
- Mix together powdered sugar and lemon juice until smooth.
- Spread a scant teaspoon of glaze on each cookie, leaving a small border. Sprinkle with a few lavender buds, if desired.
- Let glaze set, then transfer cookies to an airtight container to store. Enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
