Alana
After I posted about making pie with Stephen, Theresa pointed out to me that it had been a long while since I last baked anything. I suppose that I have been busy going camping on the weekends and working, but that does not excuse me! I have had the Duchess recipe for lavender shortbread sitting around for a while, so I decided to give it a try since my last lavender shortbread cookies did not work out the way I had hoped.
Sorry Alana, these cookies weren’t planning on working out either.
For some reason, I had the same issue with my cookies not holding their shape. I figured that I followed the directions and measured everything accurately, so I thought perhaps something was going on with my baking process. I did a google, and the links I browsed were entirely unhelpful. Most of the tips were things I had already done, such as measure my ingredients accurately (aka with a scale), using a silicone baking mat/parchment paper rather than greasing the cookie sheet, correct oven temperature, making the cookies thick enough, and chilling the dough. Maybe I’m just not meant to bake shortbread?
There were some differences in this recipe and the last one I used. In this version you use a food processor, which is something I don’t think I’ve used to make cookies before. The oven temperature specified in the recipe was also quite low, at 275 F (I did try increasing this to about 325, but my cookies spread out just as much. They also ended up burnt because I wasn’t paying attention).
I’m not sure what I need to change for these to turn out the way I would like them to (the shortbread sold at the Duchess is so good). That being said, I still find the lavender is lost a little bit. I would consider using 2 ½ – 3 tsp of lavender rather than 2 tsp.
Chateau Gateau 