Last year, I experimented with making redbud jelly (See my travel blog, “The Accidental Ozarkian”) and it did not disappoint. Jessica White submitted a redbud jelly recipe, and we published that recipe here at The WON. People are still talking about my jelly, and how light and lovely it felt on their tastebuds. I’ll be out stripping blossoms off the redbud branches here later today, to make more. However, I wondered recently if I might make redbud shortbread cookies with my grandson over the Easter holiday. He loves to make cookies with Granny, and this might be a nice diversion from our standard chocolate chippers, gingersnaps, snickerdoodles and such.
I could not find a recipe for redbud shortbread cookies, so I just went to my trusted resource, my “Betty Crocker Cookbook,” a gift that my hubs gave me in 1978 (we both benefitted from it, actually, since we both have turned to it throughout our decades of marriage) and found the standard recipe for shortbread. It has three ingredients: flour, butter and sugar. I mean, how can you even go wrong?
All you do is combine the ingredients and press them into an ungreased pan. As for the redbuds, I had already stripped a few off some branches here in the Ozarks, rinsed them and then, put them in the dehydrator for a little while, just to dry them out. We pressed the buds into the dough. Next time, though, we’ll put the buds on the bottom of the pan so that they appear on top! Or, you might just gently add the buds to the batter, but since the batter is stiff, I’m afraid it might look like a redbud massacre instead.
A few years ago, I bought a fancy shortbread pan with a design in it, and it’s been worth every penny. After all, when your last name is Baird, it matters. I only wish I could find a pan with the family crest in it – the wild boar. Now, that … would be way cool. You can also roll and cut the shortbread dough. It’s faster to use a pan.
So, JD (grandson) and I made these cookies in a short amount of time and we enjoyed them as part of the dessert collection for Easter dinner.
You can do the same with any dried flower (providing its classified as edible, of course), and also, herbs, such as lavender. Stay tuned!
Publisher/Editor Barbara Baird is a freelance writer in hunting, shooting and outdoor markets. Her bylines are found at several top hunting and shooting publications. She also is a travel writer, and you can follow her at https://www.ozarkian.com. View all posts by Barbara Baird
