I experimented last year and made homemade butter. Since then, I've been harboring a little dream about making shortbread with fresh butter. That hasn't happened just yet...but when it does, I have the recipe to use. I tried this the other week and never realized how dang quick shortbread is to make. Just a few whirls, and homemade buttery cookies are browning in the oven within minutes.

As I've mentioned before, I usually charge right into things and realize mid-whisk that I don't have enough eggs or milk on hand. This was no different: as I was happily dumping ingredients into the food processor, I realized I was short on flour. So I improvised, and subbed almond meal in for the rest of the flour. Then I added some dried lavender for good measure. Shortbread is one of those things I never would have thought to make if my Donna Hay cookbook didn't tantilize me with such beautiful pictures. But now that I have, I don't think I can go back to storebought. It's just too good, and the process of rolling this almond-flecked dough into little cookies is too tactile to give up.

Almond-Lavender Cookies, adapted from Donna Hay:

7.5 oz chilled butter, chopped

2/3 c superfine sugar

1 1/2 cups flour

1 cup almond meal

1 1/2 teaspoons dried lavender

1 egg

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Process butter, sugar, flour, almond meal and egg in food processor until smooth dough forms. Turn dough onto lightly floured surface. Gently knead lavender into dough. Roll tablespoons into balls. Place on parchment paper-lined tin, and flatten slightly with a fork. Bake for 22-25 minutes, until just golden brown.