🍯🌸 Honey Lavender Shortbread Cookies
Delicate and buttery, Honey Lavender Shortbread Cookies feature a gentle floral note from finely ground culinary lavender balanced with natural honey sweetness. These melt-in-your-mouth cookies are lightly crisp at the edges, soft and tender inside, and perfect for tea time, spring gatherings, or elegant gifting. Subtle, aromatic, and beautifully simple, they’re a refined shortbread with a whimsical floral twist. 🌸🍯
Servings 20 cookies
Calories 120kcal
Cost $4.25 per batch
Equipment
- Mixing bowl
- Hand mixer or stand mixer
- measuring cups
- Measuring spoons
- Mortar & pestle or spice grinder (for lavender)
- Rubber spatula
- Rolling pin (if rolling and cutting)
- Cookie cutters (optional)
- Parchment paper
- Baking sheet
- Cooling rack
Ingredients
- 1 cup 226 g unsalted butter, softened
- ⅓ cup powdered sugar sifted
- 2 Tbsp honey mild floral honey works best
- 1 tsp culinary dried lavender finely ground
- 1½ cups 190 g all-purpose flour
- ¼ tsp salt
- Optional: extra honey for brushing or coarse sugar for topping
Instructions
Infuse the lavender
- Grind the dried lavender using a mortar & pestle or spice grinder until very fine. This prevents a gritty texture.
Cream butter & sweetness
- In a mixing bowl, beat the butter and powdered sugar until smooth and fluffy. Mix in the honey until fully incorporated.
Add dry ingredients
- Gently mix in the ground lavender, salt, and flour until a soft dough forms. Do not overmix.
Chill the dough
- Shape the dough into a disk, wrap in plastic wrap, and chill for 30–45 minutes for clean slicing.
Shape & bake
- Preheat oven to 325°F (165°C)
- Roll dough to ¼-inch thickness and cut into shapes or slice rounds from a dough log
- Place cookies on a parchment-lined baking sheet
Bake
- Bake for 12–15 minutes, until edges are just barely golden. The cookies should stay pale.
Finish
- Cool completely. Optional: lightly brush with warm honey or sprinkle with coarse sugar for sparkle ✨
Notes
- Use culinary-grade lavender only; decorative or craft lavender can taste bitter.
- Grind the lavender very finely to avoid a gritty texture and ensure even flavor distribution.
- Lavender flavor develops as the cookies cool, so avoid adding extra at the start.
- Chill the dough for at least 30 minutes to prevent spreading and keep clean edges.
- Bake until the cookies are just set and pale, with only the slightest hint of golden color on the edges.
- For a softer floral profile, choose a mild honey (such as clover or wildflower).
- Store cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days, or freeze for up to 2 months.
- These cookies pair especially well with black tea, Earl Grey, chamomile, or vanilla lattes.