Botanical Shortbread Cookies

Eloise and I love making these shortbread cookies using whichever edible flowers are in season. In the spring, we gravitate toward pansies and violas, which work particularly well because of their thin, delicate flowers. Come summer, we use the petals of geraniums, lilacs, marigolds, nasturtiums, roses, and sunflowers. Makes 18 to 24 cookies, depending on the size of the cookie cutter

Ingredients

2 dozen edible flowers or 2cups edible flower petals

1 cup butter, softened

1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar

2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting

Directions

1. Snip flowers from their stems, being careful to keep the flowers intact. If the flowers are too big to display on the cookies, remove the petals from the center disk so you can use them individually.

2. Place the flowers between two sheets of parchment paper and set the paper between heavy books for at least an hour, or use a flower press, if you have one.

3. When you’re ready to bake, preheat the oven to 325°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.

4. Place the butter, confectioners’ sugar, and flour in the bowl of a stand mixer and mix well until a crumbly dough forms. (It will look like crumbs in the stand mixer, but will form a ball when you squeeze the dough in your hand.).

5. Dust a work surface with flour and shape the dough into a ball. Using a rolling pin, roll out the dough to about a 1/4-inch thickness. If the dough sticks to the rolling pin, lightly flour the dough, and roll it out between two sheets of parchment paper.

6. Cut out the cookies using cookie cutters or the mouth of a half-pint-size mason jar. Use a spatula to transfer the cookies to the baking sheets.

7. Bake for 20 minutes, or until the cookies turn slightly golden on the bottom.

8. Remove the cookies from the oven. While they’re still hot from the oven, use your fingers to gently press the flowers or petals onto the tops of the cookies. The warmth from the cookies, combined with the gentle pressure from your fingers, will help the flowers stick.

9. Allow the cookies to cool, then serve or freeze them in an airtight container for up to four weeks.