Whether you’re a lavender lover or just have a few extra of these edible flowers in your garden, you’ll want to get your mixer ready for these lavender shortbread cookies with a luscious lemon curd filling. 

Preparation

Lavender Shortbread Cookies: 

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour and salt. 

In a stand mixer or a medium bowl with a hand mixer, cream the butter, granulated sugar and lavender on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and add in the egg yolk and vanilla and mix on low until just incorporated, about 20 seconds. Do not overmix.

With the mixer on low, add the flour mixture in two batches about 30 seconds apart, stopping and scraping the sides as needed. Once the dough is fully combined, divide the dough in half and shape each half into a disk. Wrap each half in plastic wrap, then refrigerate until completely firm, about 3 hours.

Prepare the Lemon Curd (see recipe below).

Heat oven to 350°F. Line one or two baking sheets with parchment paper. Unwrap a dough disk on a lightly floured surface and roll it out to a ¼-inch thickness. If the dough begins to crack and is too difficult to work with, let rest at room temperature until it is more pliable, but still cold.

Using a 2-inch fluted cookie cutter, cut out the cookies. Push together the scraps, reroll and cut more cookies until you have no more dough. Place the cookies on the prepared baking sheets 1 inch apart. Repeat with the remaining dough disk. You will have around 60 cookies.

Set half aside. Using a ¾-inch cookie cutter (or the base of a piping tip) cut a hole in the center of half of the cookies.

Bake the cookies until golden and slightly browned on the edges, 8-10 minutes, rotating halfway through baking. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheets for 5 minutes then transfer to cooling racks to cool completely.

Dust the cookies with the cut-outs with powdered sugar. Flip the other cookies upside down, then pipe or spoon about 1½ teaspoons of the lemon curd filling into the centers, leaving about ¼-½ inch of room from the edges. Lightly press the tops of the cookies down onto the filling. 

Lemon Curd: 

Prepare a medium mixing bowl with a fine-mesh sieve over the top. In a separate mixing bowl, whisk together the sugar, cornstarch and salt. Slowly whisk in the lemon juice until the sugar has dissolved. Whisk in the eggs and egg yolks.

Place a saucepan with 2 inches of water over medium heat until simmering. Set the bowl with the lemon and egg mixture over the simmering water, being careful that the bottom of the bowl does not touch the water. Whisking constantly, heat the mixture until it thickens to a pudding-like consistency, about 5 minutes.

Remove from heat and pass the curd through the prepared sieve into the mixing bowl. Whisk in the lemon zest and the butter, 1-2 pieces at a time, waiting for the cubes to melt completely before adding the next batch. Let the curd cool to room temperature. Press a piece of plastic wrap directly onto the surface of the curd to stop a skin from forming. Refrigerate until completely cold, about 4 hours, before using.