So although I can't eat baked goods my desire to bake still hasn't waned. And ok truth be told I did have a bite of a cookie just so I could describe them to you (yes, that is a total justification right there). Anyway as many of you know I love to bake with odd ingredients so the other night when I was in the middle of packing I decided to take a break and try to make Lavender Lemon Butter Cookies.



On a side note, don't you hate when you decide to bake and you don't read the instructions all the way through first. Ya know like when you are mixing the dough and you then read that the dough has to be refrigerated for 2 hours before slicing and baking and it is already 9pm at night...and you quickly realize the whole baking late at night thing was d.u.m.b because now you are going to be up until way late baking cookies...that you can't even eat because you are on a crazy protein diet. Yes that was a total rant!!

Anyway back to the cookies, to begin with the recipe called for culinary lavender, and at first I was at a loss as to where to find it. However, Amazon rescued me yet again...well because they have everything. So if anyone needs "culinary lavender" I now have a crap load!! By the way, I don't really know the difference between culinary lavender and "regular lavender," other than the fact that the lavender I purchased was labeled as "culinary." I am kind of guessing that it is similar to sushi grade fish versus regular fish, but I totally just pulled that out of my ass.


To begin with, throw the sugar and lavender in a food processor and pulse until it is a fine powder. It made my entire house smell like a spa, which made me even more sleepy, since it was so late at night.


Next combine the sugar/lavender mixture, butter, eggs, sugar cookie mix and lemon zest and form into a dough. Using your hands...I love any recipe that allows me to get my hands dirty...form the dough into two logs and wrap in plastic wrap. Then sit on your couch and watch TV for 2 hours, watching the minutes on the click tick away as you remind yourself of how lame you feel for staying up waiting for cookie dough to be ready.


Finally, take the dough out of the fridge and slice into 1/2 inch thick cookies. Place on a parchment lined cookie sheet and bake in a 350 degree oven for 8-10 minutes. Let cool and place on a wire rack.


Here is the actual recipe:
1/4 cup sugar
2 tsp culinary lavender
1 pouch sugar cookie mix (17.5 oz)
1 stick butter, softened
1 egg
1 tsp lemon zest

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper and set aside.

2. In a food processor, combine sugar and lavender; cover and pulse for 20 seconds or until mixture is a fine powder.

3. In a large bowl, combine sugar mixture, cookie mix, butter, egg and lemon zest; stir until dough forms. Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface. Divide dough in half. Using your hands, shape each half into a 7" long square sided log. Wrap logs separately with plastic wrap and chill in refrigerator for at least 2 hours.

4. Remove 1 of the dough logs from refrigerator and cut into 1/2 inch thick slices. Place half of the slices on each cookie sheet, spacing evenly. Bake in a preheated oven for 8-10 minutes or until the edges are golden brown. Cool on a cookie sheet for 5 minutes. Transfer cookies to a wire rack; let cool.

I actually thought these cookies were really good...and really different! I loved the flaky buttery texture and the combination of lemon and lavender added an interesting savory flavor that complimented the sugar. Yum!! I brought them to a BBQ and they were a perfect conversation piece as well. Cheers!!