Edible Flower-Pressed Shortbread Cookies
The following excerpt is a brand-new release from Loria Stern’s book Eat Your Flowers (published by William Morrow, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers, April 2023) and is reprinted with permission from the publisher.
This is the recipe that started it all! These beautiful cookies catapulted my career in food. Delicately sweet, with a touch of salt, my signature cookies are as delightful to make as they are to share with others. I love using a variety of colorful flowers so that when presented on a platter, the cookies give the impression of pages torn from a book of pressed flowers.
The buttery shortbread dough takes the flavors of edible flowers and herbs wonderfully. Begonia will lend a tart apple- like taste, while a viola flower amplifies the sweetness naturally. In the recipe below I’ve used an array of different botanicals, but some of my favorites are pea tendrils for a verdant look; hibiscus and maple leaves, which are reminiscent of fall; and soft green herbs and freeze- dried peppercorns to celebrate the holidays. Get creative and don’t be afraid to mix and match your favorite flowers and herbs! See page 209 for some of my favorite combinations. Just remember that if you press an entire flower into your dough, it may overpower the cookie flavor, so petals, smaller blooms, and soft stems work best here.
Adhering edible flowers to cookies was a common practice of the Victorians in the 1800s. The cookies were baked and then the flowers, crystallized for longevity, were attached to the cookie with egg white. I choose instead to fasten the botanicals by pressing and freezing them into the dough, then baking the cookies with the flowers intact. This works much better to preserve the flowers and herbs rather than painstakingly painting each flower with egg white, so the recipe is easier to make at volume; it also allows me to make these beautiful treats vegan (using a vegan cookie recipe, of course). Adding fruit dusts, flavorings, and spices to the dough is a beautiful way to flavor and color this base cookie recipe and add a different dimension to the pressed flower element.
1½ cups (3 sticks/339 g) unsalted butter, at room temperatureFlower-Pressed Shortbread Cookies
1â…“ cups (300 g) granulated sugar
2 teaspoons kosher salt
3 large egg yolks
2 tablespoons (25 g) pure vanilla extract
4 cups (611 g) all-purpose flour
2 cups mixed edible flower petals and tender herbs
Cane sugar, for sprinkling
Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 weeks and in the freezer for up to 2 months.
Purchase a copy of Eat Your Flowers at HarperCollins Publishing or on Amazon.
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