Lavender Shortbread Sandwich Cookies with Honey Buttercream

Lavender Shortbread Sandwich Cookies with Honey Buttercream

Lavender and honey go so well together. Bees know it, fairies know it, princesses know it. The flavor combination is so delightful in these cookies, that I decided to share them with you. In addition to delicious, compatible flavors, these cookies have a divine texture combination. The shortbread cookies have a tender, melt-in-your-mouth texture. Together with the silky, smooth honey buttercream, they’ll make you feel fancy and regal. You’ll hold your head up higher, ring for your tea and declare that you do indeed deserve fine things!

Some people are nervous about baking with lavender because they don’t want their baked goods to taste like soap or perfume. That can be a concern if the lavender flavor is too pronounced. However, if you don’t use enough you won’t be able to taste it at all. There’s a fine balance. If you use the right amount, it will taste pleasant and have sweet undertones. I used two teaspoons of culinary lavender in these cookies, but you can adjust the amount to your tastes. You can start out with one teaspoon, bake a small sample of dough and taste it, to customize the flavor.

Speaking of tasting, my grandmother always said, “taste as you go.” This is also helpful when making the honey buttercream. Typically, when making other flavors of buttercream, you add more powdered sugar if your buttercream is too thin. In this case, adding more powdered sugar can make the buttercream too sweet. Once you have added the amount of honey that tastes good to you, you can add a little cornstarch if you need to stiffen it up a bit.

Print Recipe
Lavender Shortbread Sandwich Cookies with Honey Buttercream
Tender lavender scented cookies with silky honey buttercream filling
Keyword cookies
Servings
Ingredients
Lavender Shortbread Cookies
Honey Buttercream
Keyword cookies
Servings
Ingredients
Lavender Shortbread Cookies
Honey Buttercream
Instructions
Honey Buttercream
  1. In a medium bowl, beat butter and sugar together until smooth. Add honey, one tablespoon at a time until desired sweetness and consistency is reached.
  2. Mix in a pinch of salt to taste.
  3. Mix in cornstarch, if necessary, to firm up buttercream. *See notes below.
Recipe Notes

*The addition of cornstarch helps to firm up buttercream without adding additional sweetness.

To find culinary lavender, click here.

Lemon Buttermilk Donuts with Honey Cream Cheese Icing

Lemon Buttermilk Donuts with Honey Cream Cheese Icing by Brownie Mischief

I was seriously happy when I started seeing donuts appearing at weddings, bridal showers and occasions other than work meetings. I’ve always felt those sweet, fluffy rings of dough had a higher calling. They had such potential! And honestly who doesn’t love donuts? They’re delicious, but they can also be beautiful. These Lemon Buttermilk Donuts could certainly win a beauty contest. They would make a gorgeous edition to any breakfast, brunch or dessert table. The fresh lemon zest and the earthy flavor of honey will bring springtime right into your kitchen.

Lemon Buttermilk Donuts with Honey Cream Cheese Frosting by Brownie Mischief

If you’re on the lookout for a Mother’s Day recipe, any mom will love these pretty, fragrant treats. This is a very easy recipe and the donuts bake up quickly, so you’ll have time to fix mom a cup of her favorite tea. If you don’t have a donut pan, and you’ve been reluctant to buy one, I can honestly say I love mine. It was very affordable and I’m pleased with the performance and ease of clean up with the pan I purchased. To find the donut pan click here.

In keeping with the springtime feel, I decorated my donuts with pesticide-free edible flowers. I used pansies, but if you’re unable to find them, you can substitute pesticide-free rose petals. I found these edible pansies at my local food market in the produce department, near the fresh herbs. You can also find edible flowers at farmers’ markets and online. For a list of edible flowers, click here.  Note:  The above pictured orange ranunculus flowers on the table are not edible.  

Lemon Buttermilk Donuts with Honey Cream Cheese Icing by Brownie Mischief


Print Recipe


Lemon Buttermilk Donuts with Honey Cream Cheese Icing

Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 7 minutes

Servings


Ingredients
Lemon Buttermilk Donuts

Honey Cream Cheese Icing

Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 7 minutes

Servings


Ingredients
Lemon Buttermilk Donuts

Honey Cream Cheese Icing


Instructions
Lemon Buttermilk Donuts
  1. Preheat oven to 375ºF. Spray the wells of a ***donut pan with non-stick cooking spray.

  2. In a medium bowl, whisk together cake flour, sugar, baking powder and salt.

  3. In a small bowl, whisk buttermilk, egg, melted butter, and lemon zest together. Add to flour mixture and stir until combined.

  4. Transfer batter to a piping bag or plastic zip bag. Snip off the tip of the bag and pipe batter into prepared donut pan, filling the wells 2/3 full.

  5. Bake for 7-8 minutes or until toothpick inserted into donuts comes out clean. Let cool in pan for 5 minutes, then remove donuts to a rack to cool completely.

  6. Prepare Honey Cream Cheese Icing while donuts are cooling.

  7. Dip tops of donuts into icing and decorate as desired. Serve immediately.

Honey Cream Cheese Icing
  1. In a medium bowl, beat cream cheese and butter with an electric mixer at medium speed until smooth.

  2. Add vanilla extract and salt. Mix until combined.

  3. Add powdered sugar and mix on low speed until moistened. Turn mixer up to medium speed and mix until combined.

  4. Add honey and beat on medium speed until smooth. Add milk, a little at a time until desired consistency is reached. Beat until smooth.
    Lemon Buttermilk Donuts with Honey Cream Cheese Frosting by Brownie Mischief