Soft-Baked Lemon Cookies with Lavender

For the cookies:
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine butter, sugars, egg and lemon extract. Beat on medium-high speed until the color turns pale and everything is well combined, about 4 minutes.

Scrape down sides of the bowl and add lemon zest, lemon juice and honey. Beat on medium-high speed until well combined, about 2 minutes.

Scrape down the sides of the bowl and add flour, cornstarch and baking soda. Beat on low speed until just combined, about 1 minute.

Using a rubber spatula, give dough a couple extra stirs to make sure everything is combined. Using a large cookie scoop, form approximately 12 equal-sized cookies. Flatten slightly.

Place cookies on a parchment-lined baking sheet, spaced 2 inches apart and cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour. Do not skip this step!

Preheat oven to 350ºF. Bake cookies for about 10-–2 minutes, depending on your oven. The cookies will firm as they cool, so they may look slightly underdone when you take them out of the oven. That is perfectly fine, be careful not to over-bake. Allow cookies to cool for about 10 minutes before topping with the glaze.

For the glaze:
Bring lemon juice and lavender just to a simmer, then turn off heat. Let steep for 5 minutes and allow to cool. Strain lavender out with a mesh sieve. Whisk in powdered sugar to the lavender-lemon juice until smooth. (You may need to add a drop or two of additional liquid to achieve the right consistency, depending on how much your lemon juice reduced.)

Pour a teaspoonful of glaze on top of cooled cookies, spreading to the edge. Garnish with additional lemon zest if desired.