This post was originally posted in March 2009. There is nothing like an herbal treat and iced tea after a morning of garden chores.
We've been in London for three days and just arrived home to Blue Row so, alas, my Tea in the Garden Saturday post is this reprise. But it is a garden tea with garden treats.
Please join my friend Bernideen at Bernideen's Tea Time Blog for Tea in the Garden Saturday.
Last year, the lavender was splendid at Linderhof. A fairy is blowing lavender buds over the garden. I happened to catch her before she flitted away! Fairies do like lavender and having a bed of lavender only encourages their visits!
Most we use as aromatics. Wands to scent linens and unmentionables. Sachets for gifts. Small pillows to help the unweary go to sleep at night.
But some we save for culinary purposes. Dried and saved in a small jar bought at Williams Sonoma many years ago that says "French Lavender" -- I used those buds and the jar is perfect for the lavender that grows in Linderhof's garden!
Most we use as aromatics. Wands to scent linens and unmentionables. Sachets for gifts. Small pillows to help the unweary go to sleep at night.
But some we save for culinary purposes. Dried and saved in a small jar bought at Williams Sonoma many years ago that says "French Lavender" -- I used those buds and the jar is perfect for the lavender that grows in Linderhof's garden!
Shortbread is my all time favorite cookie. I love ANY kind of shortbread. And I do like lavender to bake with. Two favorites, together in one cookie!
You can see the lavender in the cookies. Not much -- a tablespoon or so. But to gild the lily, I also sprinkled them with lavender sugar before I baked them. So lavender on the inside and the outside!
I had gotten my new cookie cutter, a shortbread cutter actually. Which I first saw on a Barefoot Contessa episode. If Ina bought it, so should I. An easy find at Amazon and I was so excited to get it -- for it IS the perfect cutter for shortbread.
I had gotten my new cookie cutter, a shortbread cutter actually. Which I first saw on a Barefoot Contessa episode. If Ina bought it, so should I. An easy find at Amazon and I was so excited to get it -- for it IS the perfect cutter for shortbread.
And the first shortbreads, I put on a plate as I grabbed a glass of green iced tea to enjoy in the garden -- sweaty with dirty fingernails, I sat and enjoyed both shortbread and tea as I watched over my domain. Oliver, of course, was at my feet. A crumb he was not after but a real bite.
Yes, I obliged!
You can take any shortbread and add the lavender, but I found this recipe in a old cookbook I had found at a flea market, Tante Marie's Cooking School. It was a great find and I think these shortbreads are yummy. And they are pure shortbread -- butter andsugar and flour -- with the lavender added, of course!
Yes, I obliged!
You can take any shortbread and add the lavender, but I found this recipe in a old cookbook I had found at a flea market, Tante Marie's Cooking School. It was a great find and I think these shortbreads are yummy. And they are pure shortbread -- butter andsugar and flour -- with the lavender added, of course!
Lavender Shortbread
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
2 cups flour
1/2 cup superfine sugar
1 T. dried lavender
Sift the flour. Beat the butter and sugar in a mixer until creamy. Add the flour and beat until combined. Add the lavender and beat just to distribute through the dough.
Form dough into a disk, wrap in plastic and chill until firm, at least an hour.
Preheat the oven to 325. Roll out the dough to about 1/4 inch thick and cut desired shapes. Place on parchment (or sillpat) lined baking sheets and bake until just golden, about 18 minutes.
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
2 cups flour
1/2 cup superfine sugar
1 T. dried lavender
Sift the flour. Beat the butter and sugar in a mixer until creamy. Add the flour and beat until combined. Add the lavender and beat just to distribute through the dough.
Form dough into a disk, wrap in plastic and chill until firm, at least an hour.
Preheat the oven to 325. Roll out the dough to about 1/4 inch thick and cut desired shapes. Place on parchment (or sillpat) lined baking sheets and bake until just golden, about 18 minutes.
3 comments:
These cookies sound interesting. I've never eaten anything with lavendar in it. I just might have to try these.
Oh how wonderful - I just ran upstairs to the office and posted you! I loved this post the first time and love it now!
Martha,
So glad you're home to Linderhof! These shortbread cookies look divinely delicious! "Mr. Ed" and I had hot tea on the deck a few nights ago with our chilly temps. So nice to sit and watch the wildlife and the gardens growing. MaMa squirrel has 5 new babies. The squirrels are about the size of 6 week old kittens and do they have a time at the feeders. The ear of corn never last through the day. Our resident rabbit has returned, also. Perhaps with one of your shortbread cookies, one might linger awhile longer at the beauty of the garden?
Fondly,
Pat
Post a Comment