Edible flower shortbread cookies

Edible flowers are something that I can’t help but smile at every time they appear on a plate. Whether it is a sweet or savoury dish, they seem to layer on such a magical essence. With Spring quickly approaching, I can’t wait to get my hands on more and more varieties of flowers to incorporate in various recipes. You may be wondering where you can find edible flowers in the city, and this is something I wondered as well. After a bit of research, and frankly years of just keeping my eye out for them, I have come to the conclusion that they are so hard to find because they are seasonal and they don’t have a long shelf life. They are however very easy to grow yourself! This is something I am hoping to start this Spring so that I don’t need to rely on finding them in stores. 

Edible flower varieties (just to name a few- there are many more):

• Viola
• Pansy
• Stock 
• Calendula
• Snapdragon
• Marigold
• Cornflower

Stores that carry edible flowers (usually):

• The Cheese Boutique 
• Health food grocery stores (like Fiesta Farms, or Herbs & Nutrition)

Today I am sharing a shortbread cookie recipe topped with edible flowers. In order to prepare the flowers for topping the cookies, you will have to press them first. 

Flower Pressing

1. Select the flowers you would like to use for the cookies. This can be both whole flowers or individual petals. 
2. If you are using whole flowers, carefully trim down the stem at the back of the flower, removing any bulky, leafy parts. Be very careful not to cut too much off or your flower will fall apart into individual petals! If you are using individual petals, carefully pluck them from the base of the flower without ripping them apart. 
3. Cut pieces of parchment paper to approximately 20 cm x 10 cm. Fold each piece in half to get 10 cm x 10 cm booklets. The number of papers you will need depends on how many flowers you are pressing.
4. Take one piece of folded paper and place 3-4 flowers spaced apart, as flat as possible. Fold the paper over so that the flowers are sandwiched between the parchment paper. Carefully slide the sheet into the back of a heavy book (I used a giant cookbook). Repeat until all of your flowers are in the book, separated by different pages. Try not to overlap your flower parcels!
5. Let the flowers press in the book for about 1 hour before using them. Note that if you press the flowers for too long, they will dry out and will be very fragile to handle later. 

Classic Vanilla Shortbread + Turmeric Orange Variation

This recipe is an amalgamation of recipes from over the years. It is a very simple and reliable roll out cookie recipe that you can use as an everyday staple, or jazz it up with flowers for special occasions and holidays.

Ingredients:

• 1 ½ cups (200g) all-purpose flour 
• ¼ tsp salt
• ½ cup (113g) unsalted butter, at room temperature
• ½ cup (63g) confectioners sugar
• ½ egg (approximately 30g)
• ½ tsp vanilla extract
• 1 egg white 
• Edible flowers, pressed
• Coarse sugar (optional)

Turmeric Orange Variation:

• 1 batch Classic Vanilla Shortbread 
• ½ tsp ground turmeric
• ½ tsp orange zest

Method:

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour and salt. Set aside. If you are doing the turmeric and orange variation, add the ground turmeric and orange zest at this stage.

Using an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat butter and sugar on medium speed until pale, approximately 2 minutes. Turn the mixer off and scrape down the sides of the bowl. On low speed, add the egg and vanilla, mixing until evenly combined. With the mixer continuing on low speed, gradually add the flour mixture until just combined.

Turn the dough out onto a clean surface and press into a disk. Wrap the disk tightly with plastic wrap. Refrigerate the dough for a minimum of 30 minutes and up to 1 hour before rolling. 

While the dough is chilling, prepare 2 baking sheets by lining them with parchment paper. 

Once the dough is chilled, unwrap and place your disk onto a lightly floured surface. Using a rolling pin dusted with flour, gradually roll the dough until it is approximately ¼ inch (or almost ¾ cm) thick. Using a cookie cutter of your choosing (I used my 1 ½ inch and 1 ⅞ inch round cutters), carefully cut the dough into as many cookies as possible. 

Using a metal spatula lightly dusted with flour, carefully transfer cut cookies from the counter to the prepared baking sheet. The cookies can sit quite close to each other on the baking sheet (1 cm apart) as they do not spread very much.

Using a pastry brush, brush each cookie with eggwhite. Carefully place a pressed flower or pressed petals on each cookie, flattening each gently with your finger tip. Sprinkle the cookies with coarse sugar, if desired. 

Preheat the oven to 350 degree F. 

Place the prepared cookies in the freezer for approximately 15 minutes, or until frozen to the touch. Freezing the cookies before baking will help in maintaining their shape, so that they do not spread into unattractive blobs. 

After 15 minutes, place the cookies on the center rack in the pre-heated oven and bake for 4 minutes. Rotate the pan and bake for another 3 minutes or until cooked, but not golden. Transfer baked cookies onto a wire rack to cool.

Enjoy!