These soft, frosted cornflower cookies are a wonderful floral treat! They have a delicious melt-in-your-mouth texture and a lovely, sweet flavor. The cookies are then topped with a smooth cream cheese frosting and, of course, cornflower petals!
We love cooking with cornflowers. For more ideas, check out my cornflower cake, cornflower lemonade, and cornflower jelly.
Frosted cornflower cookies
I love baking with edible flowers and come up with new, creative recipes. After sharing cookies with lilacs, roses, lavender, elderflower, and cherry blossoms, I dreamed up these cornflower cookies.
The cookies start with a tender base that has lovely floral note from lost dried cornflower petals in the dough. The texture is so soft and just melts in your mouth with each and every bite.
The fluffy cream cheese frosting completes the soft cookies perfectly. Sprinkle with some more cornflower petals, and you’ll have a gorgeous floral treat.
Cornflowers have a mild floral taste that is much subtler compared to the strong aromas of other flowers like roses or lavender. I still enjoy these delicate cookies a lot and hope you will, too!
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour – As with all cookie recipes, it’s important to measure the flour correctly. It’s easy to over-measure the flour, which results in dry, crumbly cookies. Weight the flour with a digital scale or use the spoon-and-level method.
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch – creates the melt-in-your-mouth texture.
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves – A hint of ground cloves adds warmth and brings out the subtle spicy note of the cornflowers.
- 1 cup salted butter – Softened butter is best when mixing the dough. So, put your butter soften out on the counter for 15 to 20 minutes. You want it malleable but still cool.
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup dried cornflower petals – These are the star of the show! Cornflower petals have a gorgeous blue color and taste slightly floral with a spicy, clove-like note.
Frosting
- 8 oz cream cheese – You need a full-fat block of cream cheese for this recipe. Let it soften to room temperature.
- 1/2 cup salted butter – Let the butter soften as well. If you only have unsalted butter, add a sprinkle of salt.
- 1 cup powdered sugar – adds sweetness. Sift the powdered sugar to remove lumps for a smooth frosting.
- 1/4 teaspoon blue spirulina powder – lends the frosting a soft blue color. You can also use blue gel food coloring if that is what you have.
- 3 tablespoons dried cornflower petals – Sprinkle them on as a decoration. You can also decorate your cookies with fresh cornflowers if they are in season.
Variations
- Change the floral: You can try the recipe with rose petals, calendula petals, elderflower blossoms, or orange blossoms.
- Lemon zest: Adding grated lemon zest is a great way to add more flavor. Lime and orange are delicious, too.
- Other frosting: Buttercream or a simple powdered sugar icing would be good alternatives for cream frosting.
Instructions
1. Prepare for baking
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. Combine dry ingredients
In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, cornstarch, and ground cloves. Set aside.
3. Cream butter and sugar
In a large bowl, mix the softened butter and powdered sugar with an electric mixer until fluffy, about 1 to 2 minutes.
4. Create the dough
With the mixer on slow, gradually incorporate the flour cornstarch mixer into the butter and powdered sugar mixture.
5. Fold in cornflower
Using a rubber spatula or wooden spoon, fold the cornflower petals into the dough until they are evenly distributed throughout.
6. Form cookies
Roll the dough into 1-inch / 2.5 cm balls. Place them 2 inches / 5 cm apart on the prepared cookie sheet.
7. Bake
Bake the cookies in the preheated oven for 10 to 13 minutes, until the edges are slightly golden.
8. Flatten the cookies
Gently flatten the cookies with the bottom of a glass or measuring cup immediately after baking. Doing so creates a flat surface for the frosting.
9. Cool the cookies
Let the flattened cookies cool on the cookie sheet for 10 minutes. Then, transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely.
10. Mix frosting
In a mixing bowl, beat together the softened cream cheese and butter until creamy. Mix in the sifted powdered sugar and blue spirulina powder until everything is well combined.
Color the frosting
I grow different colors of cornflower in my garden and decided to reflect the various colors in the frosting. To do this, divide the frosting between 3 bowls and tint the frosting blue, purple, and pink.
11. Frost cookies
Using a mini offset spatula, frost the cooled cookies. Sprinkle with cornflower petals and serve. Enjoy!
Fresh cornflowers
Cornflowers are edible. If you have fresh flowers available, you can use the flower heads to decorate your cookies. The flowers will stay fresh for up to 24 hours, especially when you store the cookies in the refrigerator.
Storage tips
- Store: Place the cookies in a single layer in an airtight container and keep them in the refrigerator. Enjoy within a week.
- Freeze: The unfrosted cookies store perfectly in the freezer. Once the cookies are cooled, place them in a freezer-friendly container and freeze for up to 3 months. When ready to eat, thaw the cookies and frost before eating.
Cornflower Cookie Recipe
These soft, frosted cornflower cookies are a wonderful floral treat! They have a delicious melt-in-your-mouth texture and a lovely, sweet flavor. The cookies are then topped with a smooth cream cheese frosting and, of course, cornflower petals!
Ingredients
Cookies
- 2 cups / 240 g / 8.5 oz all-purpose flour
- 2 tbsp / 20 g / 0.7 oz cornstarch
- 1/4 tsp ground cloves
- 1 cup / 230 g / 8.1 oz salted butter
- 3/4 cup / 150 g / 5.3 oz granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup / 5 g / 0.17 oz dried cornflower petals
Frosting
- 8 oz / 225 g cream cheese (block-style, full-fat)
- 1/2 cup / 115 g / 4 oz salted butter
- 1 cup / 120 g / 4.2 oz powdered (confectioners’/icing) sugar
- 1/4 tsp blue spirulina powder (or blue food coloring)
- 3 tbsp dried cornflower petals
Instructions
- Prepare for baking. Preheat the oven to 350°F / 180°C / gas mark 4. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Combine dry ingredients. In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, cornstarch, and ground cloves. Set aside.
- Cream butter and sugar. In a large bowl, mix the softened butter and powdered sugar with an electric mixer until fluffy, about 1 to 2 minutes.
- Create the dough. With the mixer on slow, gradually incorporate the flour cornstarch mixer into the butter and powdered sugar mixture.
- Fold in cornflower. Using a rubber spatula or wooden spoon, fold the cornflower petals into the dough until they are evenly distributed throughout.
- Form cookies. Roll the dough into 1-inch / 2.5 cm balls. Place them 2 inches / 5 cm apart on the prepared cookie sheet.
- Bake. Bake the cookies in the preheated oven for 10 to 13 minutes, until the edges are slightly golden.
- Flatten the cookies. Gently flatten the cookies with the bottom of a glass or measuring cup immediately after baking. Doing so creates a flat surface for the frosting.
- Cool the cookies. Let the flattened cookies cool on the cookie sheet for 10 minutes. Then, transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Mix frosting. In a mixing bowl, beat together the softened cream cheese and butter until creamy. Mix in the sifted powdered sugar and blue spirulina powder until everything is well combined.
- Frost cookies. Using a mini offset spatula, frost the cooled cookies. Sprinkle with cornflower petals and serve. Enjoy!
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 26 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 184Total Fat: 14gSaturated Fat: 9gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 4gCholesterol: 37mgSodium: 113mgCarbohydrates: 14gFiber: 0gSugar: 6gProtein: 2g
