Gluten Free Lavender & Almond Shortbread

Everyone has their perfect idea of a good shortbread and coming across a good recipe for one is hard to find. Too crumbly and to crunchy can be off putting, while others prefer the crunch and crumb of a messy shortbread. Me? I prefer a shortbread with a slight crunch on the outside, almost like a crust, if you will and a sumptuous, buttery inside that continues straight the way through until the end.

The thing I love about this recipe is you can whip up these lovely little British treats in less than hour with store cupboard staples. They're perfect if you've got someone popping round short notice or if you just want a quick bake to help unwind after a tough day. In terms of flavor, the almond meal adds a lovely nutty taste and the lavender, which is more like a fragrance, kind of wafts over the shortbread in a really appealing way.

Groceries:
175g Stork or unsalted butter
75g caster sugar
200g gluten free plain flour
40g almond flour
1/2tsp dried culinary lavender
vanilla sugar for sprinkling

Preheat oven to 160 C.

All right, let's bake!
For the shortbread, place the plain flour, almond flour and sugar into a bowl and rub in the butter thoroughly with your fingertips. Of course, you can use a mixer, but there's something relaxing about doing it by hand.

Next, add the lavender and mix evenly throughout the mixture. Press the mixture into a greased tin, prick with a fork and bake for about 30 to 35 minutes. Cut into fingers while still hot and sprinkle with vanilla sugar. Allow to cool before removing from tin.