Soft and buttery lavender shortbread cookies with a light glaze are the perfect spring time treat for showers, brunch, Easter, Mother’s Day, or just because. With only 6 ingredients, they are so easy to make and even easier to devour! (nut-free)
I can’t resist a good shortbread cookie. Don’t get me wrong, I will never turn down a warm chocolate chip cookie, but for a change of pace, shortbread is always my go-to. When Girl Scout Cookie season rolls around, everyone goes crazy for Thin Mints, but I always order a box or two of humble shortbread cookies for myself.
Of course nothing can compare to a delicious, buttery homemade shortbread cookie. They are so simple, and I think that’s exactly what makes them so good. Just a few ingredients, not too sweet, and perfectly tender yet crisp.
I’m a little obsessed with lavender in the spring and tend to add it to anything and everything. For a fun change-up, I added a hint of delicate, floral lavender to classic shortbread cookies. And oh my goodness, they are to die for. If you’re a lavender lover like me, trust me when I say, YOU NEED THESE LAVENDER SHORTBREAD COOKIES.
Luckily, lavender shortbread cookies are super simple to make! They’ve only got a few ingredients (including a yummy infused lavender sugar) that you just mix together, roll up, slice and bake! Then whip up the glaze and spoon it over the top for an easy, irresistible treat!
The trick to getting these lavender shortbread cookies to bake in a perfectly round shape is to chill the dough in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes. Not a super long wait, just enough to get the butter to firm up a bit so that once you slice the cookies they hold their shape in the oven. (Also no rolling and re-rolling dough, and no cookie cutters – yay!)
Dried lavender and lavender extract can usually be found at specialty food or baking stores, or you can always find them on Amazon. If you’d like to add a hint of lemon, add about a teaspoon on lemon zest to the dough with the flour and swap a little bit of the water in the glaze for lemon juice.
PrintEasy Lavender Shortbread Cookies
Soft and buttery lavender shortbread cookies with a light glaze are the perfect spring time treat for showers, brunch, Easter, Mother’s Day, or just because. With only 6 ingredients, they are so easy to make and even easier to devour! (nut-free)
- Prep Time: 40 min
- Cook Time: 10 min
- Total Time: 50 minutes
- Yield: about 18 cookies 1x
- Category: dessert
- Method: baked
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter
- 1/4 cup lavender sugar (or regular sugar)
- 1 cup unbleached all purpose flour
- 1/4 tsp sea salt (omit if using salted butter)
- 1/4 tsp lavender extract
For the glaze:
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar
- 1/8 tsp lavender extract
- 1–3 tbsp water, added one tbsp at a time
Instructions
- In a stand mixer, cream together butter and sugar. Add lavender extract and mix well. Add flour and salt and mix until well blended.
- Place dough onto a sheet of plastic wrap and roll into a log about 1 inch in diameter.
- Refrigerate dough for 30 min.
- Preheat oven to 350° F. Remove dough from refrigerator and slice into 1/2 inch thick circles. Place on a cookie sheet lined with parchment or a silicone baking mat.
- Bake for 12-15 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool before removing to a cooling rack.
- To make the glaze, stir powdered sugar and lavender extract. Slowly add water, one tbsp at a time until it reaches glazing consistency. Lightly drizzle over cooled cookies and let harden before storing.
- Store cooled cookies in an airtight container at room temperature.
Notes
To make the lavender sugar, add 1/4 cup sugar and 1 tbsp dried food grade lavender to a jar. Close the lid and shake to release the oils. Let rest for 24 hours to infuse. Before using, strain out the lavender using a fine mesh strainer.
To make lemon lavender shortbread cookies, add 1 tsp lemon zest to the dough with the flour, and add switch 1 tbsp of water in the glaze for lemon juice.
Keywords: lavender, shortbread, cookies
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This post was originally published May 2016 and has been updated.
nutritioulicious says
May 10, 2016 at 11:46 amYay, you’re back! So glad the site is up and running! Would have been a shame to keep holding out on us with these beautiful cookies!
Kaleigh M says
May 11, 2016 at 8:15 pmThanks, Jessica! I’m glad it’s up again too! 🙂
Amber @ Homemade Nutrition says
May 10, 2016 at 12:49 pmThese cookies are gorgeous! I love shortbread cookies and can’t wait to try this version, I’ve never cooked with lavender before but it’s been on my “to-do” list for a while! Thanks for the recipe and awesome pics!
Kaleigh says
May 29, 2016 at 9:17 pmThank you, Amber! I love using it in food! 🙂
Kaleigh M says
May 11, 2016 at 8:17 pmThank you, Amber! It was on my to-do list for a long time too. Now I can’t get enough! 🙂
susan bird says
August 10, 2017 at 4:28 pmWhere would you purchase lavender extract? I bought lavender dried to make the cookies
Kaleigh says
August 10, 2017 at 5:03 pmHi Susan! I bought it at Sur la Table, but you can get it on Amazon at this link.
Kathy says
January 11, 2019 at 5:24 pmI know this is a long time after your original posting of this recipe, but I wanted to say how much I liked it. I was afraid it would be too lavendery, with lavender sugar, lavender buds AND lavender extract, but they were perfect. I like a less sweet shortbread, so next time I will use less sugar. And for the same reason, skip the glaze — it is sugar overload for me. It was fun to make the lavender sugar, which I will have on hand for future lavender adventures. I just made these for a meeting, and found a single sprig of blooming lavender in my greenhouse, which I laid on top of the tray. Mmmmmmmm.
Kaleigh says
January 13, 2019 at 9:30 pmThanks so much Kathy, that makes my day!
Eileen deCamp says
June 14, 2019 at 7:30 amHi Kaleigh,
I made these the other day and they were delicious!
Eileen
Kaleigh says
June 14, 2019 at 11:34 pmI’m so glad you liked them!