Loving Luscious Lavender

Photo courtesy of Oregon Lavendar Association

I ordered edible lavender online over a year ago when I was making Sarma Melngailis' recipe for Lavender Ice Cream (see Raw Food Real World). I somehow ordered enough lavender for an army so it still sits in my pantry, waiting with purpose, for another raw creation. A wave of artistry swept through me this morning and here is the sweet and delicate result....

Lavender Shortbread Cookies

1 heaping cup soaked cashews
meat of 1 young thai coconut
1/2 cup agave nectar
1/4 cup pure water
1/4 - 1/2 cup almond flour (finely ground cashews would work too)
1 tbsp. edible lavender flowers
1 tbsp + 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/2 tsp. gold quality sea salt
a little squeeze of fresh lemon juice, if desired

Put all ingredients, except flour, into your high speed blender. Churn on high until all ingredients are completely smooth. Use a spatula to scrap batter into a medium sized bowl. Fold in 1/4 cup nut flour, mixing thoroughly, adding in additional flour until you achieve a batter like consistency. Should be a bit thicker than pancake batter. Warning, this mixture is killer delicious and hopefully you won't eat it all before it makes it into the dehydrator. (However, I hope you'll feel free to lick the bowl clean as I did this morning!)

Using a small ice cream scoop or a tablespoon, put rounds of batter onto teflex sheets on a dehydrator tray. (Mine looked like little footballs more than circles). Very gently shake or tap tray until you have the desired thickness of your cookie. Place in a 115 degree dehydrator until cookies appear firm enough to peel away from the teflex sheet, about 12 hours or more. Put cookies back onto tray and continue dehydrating until they are a bit crisp or firm on the outside and nice and soft on the inside. Approximately another 12-24 hours, depending upon your personal preference. ENJOY!