Lavender Lemon Shortbread with Lemon Curd

Lavender and lemon are a marriage made in heaven. They are the perfect pair visually, for their  aroma and their flavour.

These little lavender lemon shortbread cookies are my secret weapons. They something I am truly proud of. They crumble in your mouth and then the aroma swirls around... just beautiful! 

I picked my lavender from my garden. If you don't grow it, then try to source it from friends, or you can go for a walk and you might be surprised what you can find. When you pick them, make sure they have not been chemically sprayed.

For 25 little shortbreads, you should need:

8 springs of lavender flowers, picked
a handful of mint, finely chopped
2 lemon zests, finely chopped
150g butter
1/4 cup (55g) caster sugar
1 1/4 cup (180g) flour


(This is actually quite a small batch, multiply the recipes if you need to - they will be diminished quickly anyway no matter how many you have baked!)

Zest the lemon and pick the flower buds from the lavender.

Place the chopped mint, lavender and lemon zest with the butter, then cream the mixture until it is pale yellow in colour.

Fold in the flour and chill the dough in the fridge for 30mins. Dust some flour onto a bench surface before using a rolling pin to flatten the mixture into a shape thats good for cutting into pieces.

Cut out the cookies with a cookie cutter. You can use any cookie cutter's shape that you  wish. Place the cut cookies onto baking paper and return them  into the fridge to rest.

Bake them in a 160°C oven for 20mins. Rest them on a cooling rack and keep them in an air tight container once cooled.

Lemon Curd

This silky lemon curd is different from the Edmond's cook book cornstarch version, it is much much smoother. Its velvety texture is just simply beautiful and has only three ingredients - eggs, lemon juice and sugar. This recipe is thicken by egg and has to be cooked under a very low heat for around 15 minutes or so. Best lemon curd I have ever had! You can but it on toasted brioche, shortbread or fresh strawberries!

To make 1.5 cups of lemon curd, you will need:

3 eggs
juice of 2 lemon
3/4 cup sugar
56g butter, roughly cubed

Juice the zested lemon into a mixing bowl and pass this through a fine sieve. Whisk the sugar and eggs into the sieved lemon juice and then place the mixing bowl over some hot water on a very low heat.

Cover the curd with some baking paper and let it rest in the fridge until it is cool.

Place the lemon curd into a sterilised jar and can keep it in the fridge for 2 weeks. Don't forget to attach the following serving suggestion:

Once opened,  keep refrigerated and use within one week. Dunk your shortbread into the lemon curd. For a bit of indulgence,stir the lemon curd with a small amount of whipped cream and make shortbread sandwiches!