Lavender Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

Don't say it!

I already know.

My blog has been all like "Lavender! Blueberries! Lavender! Blueberries" for the past two weeks.

Well, get used to it because this trend is only going to continue since I'm going to a lavender farm tomorrow (or possibly today...we'll see).

By the time you read this (assuming that time will be around 10ish AM), Eugene and I will be in the car, well on our way to the North Fork for a few days. That's Long Island wine (and lavender!) country, folks! They have beaches and wineries and little shops. We're staying at a bed & breakfast located a 3-minute walk from a lavender farm where they let you wander around the lavender fields for 30 minutes if you buy something in their store. Sounds like a good deal to me!

Also, there's going to be a giant claw foot soaking tub in our room. We had our choice of rooms, and I chose the room with the claw foot tub.

I packed bubble bath.

I'll be sure to share all the fun stuff with you upon my return. Or you can follow along on Twitter and Facebook!

For now, I recommend you try these cookies. They're a classic kind of chocolate chip cookie--chewy on the inside, crisp on the outside, melty chocolate all throughout--but with a little something special. That something special is lavender, which when crushed and added to the batter along with the sugar and butter, adds a delicate floral perfume throughout the cookie. I recommend preparing the dough the day before and letting it chill overnight in the fridge. It'll give the lavender a chance to infuse the dough for a more pronounced flavor.

If you're really feeling ambitious, I'd also make up a batch of my honey lavender ice cream, and use both to make homemade lavender ice cream sandwiches.

Enjoy!

Lavender Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
yields about 4 dozen cookies

Ingredients
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup oatmeal flour (to make: grind 1/2 cup rolled oats in food processor until finely milled, and measure out 1/4 cup).
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup granulated white sugar
3/4 cup light brown sugar
2 tablespoons culinary lavender 
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips or chunks

Directions
Combine flour, oatmeal flour, baking soda, and salt in a bowl. Whisk to combine well and set aside. In the base of an electric mixer, combine the butter, sugar, and lavender. Beat well until light and fluffy (about 5 minutes). Beat in the eggs, one at a time, and vanilla extract. Slowly add the flour mixture and stir in well until combined.  Remove bowl from mixer and mix in chocolate by hand.

Cover cookie dough bowl with plastic wrap and place in refrigerator to chill for a minimum of 8 hours and up to 24.

When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicon mat. Portion dough into 2 tablespoon size round balls and place on prepared parchment paper about 2 inches apart. Bake 10-12 minutes, or until edges are crisp and center is just set. Let cool on baking sheet 3 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack. Repeat with rest of dough (let cookie sheet cool between batches). Leftover dough can also be stored following these directions.