Following the success of my llama cookies a couple of weeks ago, I decided to make these iced lavender biscuits for my take on the 24 Iced Biscuits challenge from Series 7, Episode 2 of The Great British Bake Off. Mind you, these are biscuits in the English sense of the word- a.k.a. cookies to us Americans. Not American biscuits, which are more like English scones in shape and texture. And let's not get into the nonsensical things that Americans call scones...
These lavender biscuits are a flavorful variation of the typical sugar cookie. The lavender gives a light floral flavor. Also, my addition of fresh lemon juice to the royal icing helps to balance out the earthiness of the lavender.
In order to get a substantial lavender flavor in these biscuits, I added both dried lavender and lavender extract to the cookie dough. I desiccated the dried lavender and mixed it in with the granulated sugar. Although it would be possible to break down the lavender with a mortar and pestle, I do not own such instruments. I just gave the dried lavender a blitz in my mini food processor with the sugar. I personally made my own lavender extract a few months ago because I like the flavor so much. Lavender extract is commercially available, but may be difficult to find just anywhere. If you want to make your own, you should plan to start a couple of weeks in advance of intending to use it. It really just takes mixing a bunch of dried lavender with a neutral light alcohol (I used rum). Its important to shake the mixture up about once daily, but the extract is ready to be strained and used after about two weeks of soaking.
I also prefer to sift the dry ingredients for these biscuits before mixing them into the batter. Sifting helps prevent lumps from forming and ensures a good texture.
It is important to keep the resulting cookie dough cold throughout the process in order to maintain good structural integrity. I usually only refrigerate the dough about 30 minutes before rolling, since it tends to be difficult to roll if it's too cold. I then cut out the shapes and refrigerate them for about an hour prior to baking. This second chill is the most important... Room temperature cookies will spread and lose their shape when they go in the oven; cold cookies will maintain their shape.
I know that this challenge in GBBO is to bake 24 iced biscuits. My recipe, however, makes about 40. The more, the better? It gave me some leeway in case any broke or in case I truly messed up decoration beyond redemption. Of course, my decoration skills are mediocre at best. I am very good at making royal icing, but I'm not so good at wielding it. At first, I was very proud of my yellow accents on these teapot-shaped biscuits. And then I started making the flowers. My flowers seriously look like a 5-year-old's. But what's done is done, and I now just call these biscuits quaint rather than pretty.
Right now, I have a ton of poached pears and a lot of egg yolks left over from making the royal icing for these biscuits. I have some tentative plans to make either a custard tart with the pears or a creme anglaise to pour over the pears. Although I may share my adventures with custards and creams, my next planned bake specifically for my Bake Off challenge is Mary Berry's Frosted Walnut Layer Cake technical challenge from Series 6, Episode 1.
Iced Lavender Biscuits
Ingredients
Lavender Biscuits
3 C all purpose flour
3/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 C (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
1 C granulated sugar
1 large egg
2-4 tbsp milk, as needed
2 tsp lavender extract
2 tbsp dried lavender, pulverized
powdered sugar, for rolling
Royal Icing
4 large egg whites
4 C powdered sugar
juice of 2 lemons
water to thin as necessary
gel food colorings
Instructions
1. Make cookie dough: Mix together granulated sugar and pulverized dried lavender. Cream together with butter until light and fluffy. Add in egg and lavender extract and continue to mix. Meanwhile, sift together flour, baking powder, and salt. Gradually add the dry ingredients into the wet, continuing to mix while doing so. Add milk, 1 tbsp at a time, until the dough just barely comes together.
2. Gently knead the dough for about 30 seconds. Split dough into two sections, and form each into a disk. Wrap each in plastic wrap and refrigerate 30 minutes.
3. After dough has chilled, roll out dough to 1/4 inch thickness (6mm), using powdered sugar on your work surface to prevent sticking. Cut out shapes.
4. Cover shaped cookies and return to the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes, until they are cold.
5. Preheat oven to 375°F (190°C).
6. Arrange cookies on parchment paper on cookie sheets. Bake for 8 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool before removing from pans.
7. Make royal icing: Beat egg whites at high speed until soft peaks form. Gradually add powdered sugar, continuing to beat throughout. Add in lemon juice. Add water 1 tsp at a time as needed to thin the icing for workability.
8. Separate the icing into different containers in order to make different colors. Add gel food coloring to make the desired colors. Use piping bags to decorate biscuits and leave for at least 30 minutes in order to let the icing set before serving. Store at room temperature.
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