Recipes bring back strong memories of the people who shared them with us. Ingredients, too, can have strong associations with people who love those ingredients.
So, for me, this recipe packs some heavy emotions. It makes me miss a dear friend who shared the recipe with me. We were neighbors at the time she invited me over to her apartment to bake these cookies together, but now we live over 1,500 miles apart. But that’s a lovely thing about baking–it animates the senses and brings back scenes of shared times with friends.
One of the key ingredients, too, always makes me think of my sister. The lavender that I use for this recipe was a gift from her. She has spent the last several years living in France, where lavender is a key ingredient in regional recipes. Lately, she’s been sharing Instagram photos of fields of lavender–a whole sea of purple.
What are your recipes that awaken memories of friends? What ingredients do you associate with certain friends’ cooking?
Gather a friend or two to bake these cookies so that you will create some new memories. Plus, the recipe yields a LOT, so you will have shortbread to share! It might just make you want to share the recipe with friends, too. Soon after my friend and I made and sampled these, I emailed my sister to send her the recipe. The subject line? “These taste like they fell from heaven!”
Make these with Conebella Farm Cultured Butter: a preservative-free, creamy butter that has probiotics similar to yogurt!
Lavender Shortbread Cookies with Conebella Farm Cultured Butter
Adapted from Port and Fin
- Yield: 20 1x
- Category: Dessert
Ingredients
- 3/4 lb. Conebella Farm Cultured Butter, room temperature
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 1 tsp lavender, ground or finely chopped
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 3 1/2 cups flour
- 1/4 tsp salt
- Cinnamon and sugar, for topping
Instructions
- Cream together the sugar and butter in a food processor. Add lavender and vanilla.
- Transfer to a bowl and mix in flour and salt.
- Shape into a square log, wrap with plastic wrap and refrigerate for an hour.
- Preheat oven to 350.
- Unwrap dough and slice with a sharp knife. Arrange on an ungreased cookie sheet and bake for 10-12 minutes until slightly golden.
- Sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar