Be warned–these won’t last long in the cookie jar! Tender and soft, buttery and fragrant. Cake-style cookies remind us of tea time and shared times with friends and family–gatherings that are leisurely and special. We added dried lavender buds to both the cookie and the glaze. They add a floral dimension that complements the lemony glaze. (NOTE: be sure to buy culinary-grade dried lavender buds that haven’t been sprayed. Look for them online, at local spice shops, or at your local farmers’ market).
Satisfy your sweet tooth with this easy-to-make recipe for Soft and Chewy Lemon Lavender Cookies.
1. Info for Soft and Chewy Lemon Lavender Cookies
- Cook Time: 51 min
- Total Time: 51 min
- Servings: 28
- Calories: 181.59 kcal
2. Ingredients for Soft and Chewy Lemon Lavender Cookies
- 1 cup unsalted butter (removed from refrigerator 30 min ahead, diced)
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 3/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 2 3/4 cups cake flour
- 2 large egg whites (at room temperature)
- 2 tablespoons heavy whipping cream
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon culinary dried lavender buds
- 2 cups confectioners’ sugar
- 1/4 cup heavy whipping cream
- 2 tablespoons lemon zest (zest of 2 lemons)
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 1/8 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1 tablespoon culinary dried lavender buds
3. Directions:
- Special Equipment: KitchenAid® Stand Mixer; KitchenAid® Sifter + Scale Attachment; Two large rimmed baking sheets; parchment paper; large pastry piping bag; round plain pastry tip (1/2-in/12-mm)
- Position one oven rack in the center of the oven and a second rack in the lower third. Preheat the oven to 350ºF/180ºC/gas 4. Line the rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Place the 1 cup butter in the bowl of your KitchenAid® Stand Mixer fitted with the flat beater. Attach the KitchenAid® Sifter + Scale Attachment to your mixer, and have the ingredient valve in the closed position. Weigh the sugar (7 pz), baking powder (0.28 oz), and salt (0.13 oz) in the ingredient hopper, taring the scale between ingredients. Turn the mixer to low speed, open the ingredient valve, and sift the sugar mixture into the mixing bowl. Cream the butter mixture until the sugar is incorporated, about 1 minute. Turn the mixer to medium, and beat until creamy, about 4 minutes. Stop the mixer.
- Close the ingredient valve. Weigh the cake flour (11.6 oz) in the ingredient hopper.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the 2 egg whites, 2 Tbs cream, and 2 tsp vanilla extract.
- With the mixer on medium-low speed, slowly pour the egg mixture down the side of the mixing bowl. Beat until incorporated and smooth, about 2 minutes longer. Turn the mixer off and use a rubber spatula to scrape down the side of the bowl.
- Turn the mixer to low speed, open the ingredient valve, and sift in the cake flour. At the same time, add the 1 Tbs lavender buds directly into the mixing bowl. Be careful not to overmix the dough. Remove the mixer bowl, and use a rubber spatula to blend in any flour remaining on the sides of the bowl. This is a soft and sticky dough.
- Fit the piping bag with the pastry tip. Fold the back of the bag back to form a cuff. (This makes it easier to fill the bag.) Push a bit of the fabric of the pastry bag into the tip to “plug” the opening. This prevents the cookie dough from leaking out. Set the pastry bag in a 2-cup/480-ml measuring cup for easier filling. Transfer the cookie dough to the piping bag. Twist the top of the bag to close and remove any air pockets. Holding the bag upright, pipe even, 1 1/2-inch/ 3.75-cm circles of dough onto the parchment-lined baking sheets, spaces the cookies 2-in/5-cm apart. (You should have room for 13 cookies per sheet.)
- Bake until puffed and golden at the edges, 15 to 20 minutes. For even baking, at the midpoint, rotate the pans from front to back and top to bottom. Transfer the pans to wire racks and let the cookies cool in the pans for 10 minutes. Use a flexible spatula to transfer the cookies to wire racks to cool completely, at least 20 minutes.
- To make the glaze, fit the stand mixer with the flat beater. Close the ingredient valve and weigh the confectioners’ sugar (8 oz.) in the ingredient hopper. Add the 1/4 cup cream, 2 Tbs lemon zest and 1 Tbs lemon juice, and 1/8 tsp salt to the mixing bowl. With the mixer on low speed, open the ingredient valve and sift the sugar into the cream mixture. Beat on medium-high speed until smooth, about 2 minutes, stopping the mixer once to scrape down the sides of the bowl. Remove the mixer bowl, and use a rubber spatula to blend in any sugar remaining on the sides of the bowl.
- Use a small offset spatula to spoon glaze into the center of each cookie, spreading it out but leaving the edge of the cookie unglazed. Sprinkle a few lavender buds on each cookie before the glaze sets up. Stored in a covered container between layers of waxed paper, the cookies will keep for 3 to 4 days at room temperature.
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