I love a good shortbread cookie and these Lavender Earl Grey Shortbread Cookies are my new favorite! They’re light and buttery and so easy to make.
But, like the weather in Los Angeles, it’s impossible to tell what season they fit best! The simple shortbread base feels like Christmas, the cozy earl grey reminds me of Fall, and the lavender makes me think of Spring… and my 8th grade geometry teacher who taught me that you can’t just draw a bunch of fun shapes on your paper and expect to pass.
How Do You Make Earl Grey Shortbread Cookies?
If you’re a little on the fence about lavender, let me tell you that the Private Selection Lavender Earl Grey loose leaf tea that so good! I love floral flavors, but Earl Grey’s bergamot takes center stage in this blend. Lavender doesn’t entirely wait in the wings, but it isn’t overpowering either. The blend is made from black tea, lavender petals, and all-natural oil of bergamot. It’s simple and delicious.
The easiest way to make these Earl Grey shortbread cookies is by using a food processor. Simply add all ingredients except for butter and vanilla and pulse for one minute. Add the butter and vanilla and pulse until it comes together into a shaggy dough.
Remove blade, carefully transfer dough onto clean surface, and work dough until it comes together. Shape into two flat discs. Place each on a piece of parchment or wax paper and place in the fridge to chill for 30 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Always use an oven thermometer to check the actual temperature inside your oven. Mine swore it was 350, but it was actually 425!
Roll cookies to ¼” and cut out 1” circles. The shortbread cookies shouldn’t spread, so you can bake up to 16 at a time on a large cookie sheet. Bake cookies for 15 minutes or until edges are just slightly golden brown. Place baking sheet on a cooling rack, let cool, and then enjoy!
What Is Earl Grey?
Earl Grey is a black tea that has been infused with oil of bergamot (a type of orange). Rumor has it that it originated in the mid-1800s when a Chinese tea master created the blend for Charles Grey, Prime Minister of England and the second Earl of Grey. His wife was a fan and requested that her local tea merchants recreate the blend.
How Do I Store Earl Grey Tea?
Tea experts recommend storing black tea in a cool, dark place in an opaque, airtight container. Just like the one that the Private Selection Lavender Earl Grey comes in! Simply tuck it into the back of your pantry away from spices and other aromatic foods.
Can I Freeze the Earl Grey Shortbread Cookie Dough?
Yes! Shortbread dough freezes well. If you’re trying to save time before the holidays arrive, make a batch of these and roll them into parchment logs (instead of discs). Place the logs in a freezer-safe resealable bag and store in your freezer.
When you’re ready to bake your Earl Grey shortbread cookies, remove the logs from the freezer, let them thaw for a few minutes and create ¼”-wide slices with a sharp knife. Bake at 350°F for 15 minutes or until the edges are light golden brown.
Can I Make These Cookies With a Different Flavor of Tea?
Sure! You could use the Private Selection Earl Grey tea bags instead to make them without lavender! You can use any leftover tea to make, well, a cup of tea… or a London Fog, which is (my favorite) tea latte made with steamed milk, vanilla syrup, and Earl Grey tea.
(Or you could swap the Earl Grey entirely and make these shortbread cookies with Jasmine or Cranberry Blood Orange loose leaf tea. Feel free to send us a batch for taste testing.)
If you want to amp up the tea flavor, add a second tablespoon of tea to the food processor bowl before pulsing the ingredients together!
Before you head to Kroger (or Ralphs, part of the Kroger family of stores), make sure to click here to grab Private Selection digital coupons and save up to $50!
Lavender Earl Grey Shortbread Cookies
Print Recipe
Ingredients
- 3½ cups all-purpose flour
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- 1 Tbsp. Private Selection Lavender Earl Grey Loose Leaf Tea
- ½ tsp. fine sea salt
- 2 tsp. vanilla extract
- 1½ cups unsalted butter
Instructions
- Pulse flour, sugar, tea, and salt together for one minute in bowl of food processor.
- Add vanilla extract and butter. Pulse until shaggy dough is formed, about two minutes.
- Remove blade and transfer dough to working surface. Work dough until it comes together and shape into two discs.
- Place each disc on parchment and transfer to refrigerator for 30 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 350° F.
- Line baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Roll out dough to ¼” and cut out cookies using 1”-wide cookie cutter. Transfer cookies to baking sheet.
- Bake for 15 minutes or until edges are a light golden brown.
Notes
My background is in publishing (I've worked at Parade, Men's Journal, Us Weekly, Stuff, Blender, Beachbody, and more), mostly with a focus in health, fitness, and entertainment. I've also run my own baking company and competed on Cupcake Wars, so hit me up with your baking questions!
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Yum!! I love the idea of using tea in these cookies! The lavender is such a nice flavor!
I made these today and they are delicious! I did up the amount of tea and used 2 Tbsp of Rishi Earl Grey Lavender Tea. I pulsed the tea with about 2 Tbsp. of the sugar in a spice grinder and threw the powder into the rest of the flour, sugar & salt bowl. I just mixed with a regular hand mixer and then used my hands to knead a bit into the 2 flattened discs.
Eileen, thank you so much for your comment and I’m so happy to hear that you liked them! I love Rishi too – their turmeric tea is one of my faves! 🙂 Have a great weekend!
Just made these for the first time using a local looseleaf brand called Earl Grey crème de la crème that has lavender influence. We decided to do a small portion of them with a lavender icing on top, just to boost the essence from the blend . Delicious. Definitely a win
Emma! I’m so sorry to hear this. Feel free to email us at contact@letseatcake.com and we’ll see if we can sort out the problem.
I’m hoping to make these today but it doesn’t say if it’s room temp or cold butter? I know for pie dough you use cold butter so I’m assuming it’s would be the same but I also wanted to check.
Lauren – that’s a great question! It’s been a while since I’ve made these, but I almost always use room temperature butter. Pie dough is a little different as you don’t incorporate the butter in the same way, but cut it in. I’d go with room temp butter. Also, you don’t need to use a cookie cutter – we’ve found that rolling them into a log, popping them into the freezer, and slicing them from there works beautifully. Enjoy and tag us on IG (@letseatcakeblog) so we can share them!
Can this dough be made ahead of time and frozen or kept in the fridge? If so, how many days?
Hello! I haven’t tested freezing the shortbread dough, but you should be able to wrap it tightly in cling/saran wrap for up to three months (I might also put it in a ziploc bag) and then slice and bake it when you’re ready to do so. (You could also keep it in the fridge, but that might not go as wel, so I’d opt for the freezer.)