I’m so excited to share this sweet, sweet recipe with all of you! With only 4 ingredients, these lilac shortbread cookies are super easy to whip up, yet so impressive! They are buttery and crisp with a delicate floral flavour that melts in your mouth. The only catch, you have to have lilac sugar for the recipe! You can find my recipe to make your own sugar here.
If you’ve never used lilac sugar before you may find it to be quite strong and earthy in scent. But the aroma will start to settle and is baked with other ingredients so the flavour will be distributed. A lot of flavour will come from sprinkling the lilac shortbread cookies with the sugar and the dried lilac blooms. Overall the lilac shortbread cookies are delicate and light.
Ingredients
- Unsalted butter
- Lilac sugar
- Pure vanilla extract
- All-purpose flour
Gifting
Shortbread cookies make a sweet gift as they last a very long time, especially these lilac shortbread cookies. They are the perfect bridal shower, baby shower or hostess gift to impress a crowd. Most people don’t even know that lilacs are edible, you’ll be gifting something unique. You can box or bag them with a simple bouquet of flowers, a bottle of wine, or a box of tea.
Tips for Making Lilac Shortbread Cookies
- When making shortbread you want to make sure your butter is cold before working and baking with it.
- Always refrigerate your dough for 20-30 minutes to firm the butter a little. This makes it easier to work with; roll out and shape. You don’t want the butter so firm that it’s a stiff block, but just workable.
- If your butter has softened in the dough while shaping, place the cookie sheet of unbaked cookies into the fridge for 10 minutes to harden the butter again. Then bake as you normally would. If the butter in the cookies are too soft and placed in the oven to bake, your shortbread cookies will spread out and you’ll lose the shape and butter as they are baking.
- If your lilac sugar has clumped up, pour it out of the jar and break up the clumps before adding to the butter.
- The lilac flowers are where you get most of the flavour, so make sure you have pressed flowers from your sugar into the cookies, do not remove them. I like to add a few on the top of my dough and roll them in.
More Lilac Recipes
Edible Flower Recipes
How To Make Lilac Shortbread Cookies
Step One: Beat lilac sugar and butter together, add flour and vanilla extract. Shape cookie dough into a disc, wrap in plastic and refrigerate until slightly firm.
On a floured work surface, using a rolling pin, roll the dough out. Using a round cookie cutter, cut cookies out and place on a baking sheet. Sprinkle the tops of each cookie with extra lilac sugar.
Step Two: Bake until the bottoms are just starting to brown.
Lilac Shortbread Cookies
These lilac shortbread cookies are delicate, buttery and have a slight floral flavour. They are perfect with tea, for bridal and baby showers, or simply to impress friends. With only 4 ingredients, they are simple and easy to whip up as long as you have lilac sugar ready to go.
- Prep Time: 30 mins
- Cook Time: 22 mins
- Total Time: 52 mins
- Yield: 2 dozen 1x
- Category: Cookies
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: British
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1/4 cup lilac sugar (plus extra to sprinkle on top of cookies)
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
Instructions
- Cream butter and lilac sugar together in a stand mixer until light and fluffy. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed. Add vanilla extract and the flour, mix to combine.
- Shape the dough into a disc, wrap it in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 20 minutes. This step is very important to firm up the butter.
- Meanwhile, line a baking sheet with parchment paper and preheat your oven to 300˚F.
- On a lightly floured work surface, using a rolling pin, roll the dough out to about 1/4 inch thick.
- Using a round cookie cutter (approx. 2 inches in diameter) cut cookies out and place on a prepared baking sheet approx. 2 inches apart. Use up all the dough. Sprinkle the tops of each cookie with extra lilac sugar.
- Bake for approx. 18 – 22 minutes or until bottoms are just starting to brown.
Notes
The lilac flowers are where you get most of the soft delicate flavour. Make sure you have pressed flowers from your sugar into the cookies, do not remove them.
If your lilac sugar has clumped up, pour it out of the jar and break up the clumps. It will smell strong and earthy, but not to worry the taste is delicate and lovely.
For best results store in an airtight container for up to a month or freeze for up to two months.
You can easily double this recipe.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cookie
- Calories: 61
- Sugar: 2.1g
- Sodium: 27mg
- Fat: 3.9g
- Saturated Fat: 2.4g
- Unsaturated Fat: 0
- Trans Fat: 0
- Carbohydrates: 6.1g
- Fiber: 0.1g
- Protein: 0.6g
- Cholesterol: 10mg
Keywords: Shortbread, Lilac, Cookies, Spring
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FAQ’s
These lilac shortbread cookies are meant to shine on their own. But you could add small bits of white chocolate but be careful not to overpower the delicate floral notes.
Unlike the strong scent of lilac blossoms, lilac sugar has a softer more delicate floral note. It also has an earthy and slight bitter taste.
Yes, you may add fresh lilac buds to your shortbread dough. Keep in mind that the buds will turn colour when baked (a slight brown colour) and will have a strong floral taste.
I was very surprised there are not many ingredients needed, but the outcome of the cookie is so great! Love it!
★★★★★