This week I originally hoped that I would have some wild strawberries to work with, but it was still a bit early at my favorite strawberry spot. But while we were in the woods there we did find a couple nice things. First of all, the columbines were in bloom and absolutely stunning.

On top of that, there were wild roses everywhere. We grabbed a bunch and made an attempt at rosewater, though it didn’t come out strong enough to use in the kitchen. It was fragrant, but now fragrant enough to come through when cooked. Shoot.

Fortunately, I still have plenty of nettle powder, so I whipped up a couple new nettle experiments: sandwich cookies and icebox cake. And thankfully they were both absolutely delicious.

Powdered nettles taste a whole lot like matcha, so that is what to expect in these desserts. The sandwich cookies are like a matcha-flavored oreo with better filling. The icebox cake is hard to describe, but my friend’s family refers to it as simply “favorite dessert,” which is spot on. It really is that good. For more information on nettles and nettle powder, you can check out my post here.

You can make plain nettle wafer cookies, or you can make your own nettle sandwich cookies with the addition of a bit of buttercream, or if you’re looking for something to have available for a delightful dessert all week, you can make yourself a delicious nettle icebox cake.

Nettle Wafer Cookies

Ingredients:
1 cup sugar
1 cup flour
1 stick butter (8 tbsp), cold
¼ tsp salt
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
¼ tsp baking soda
3 tbsp milk
2 tbsp nettle powder

Directions:
Mix the dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Add the butter and beat in until it begins to incorporate as small clumps.

In a separate bowl, beat together the egg, milk, and vanilla. Add this to the dry ingredients and beat together until it is incorporated, but not overmixed. Remove the dough to a work surface and knead a few times to ensure that it is fully combined.

Roll the dough into two logs around 2” in diameter. Wrap these in plastic wrap and put them in the freezer overnight (or as long as a month or so).

When it is time to bake the cookies, remove the dough from the freezer and slice it into ¼” thick rounds. Place these on a baking tray lined with parchment paper.

Bake the cookies at 350 for around 8-10 minutes, until the edges are just brown.

Allow them to cool fully before use, as they should crisp up nicely.

Nettle Sandwich Cookies

Ingredients:
1 batch of nettle wafer cookies (see above)
½ cup butter, softened
1¼ cups powdered sugar
½ tsp vanilla
1 tsp cream or milk

Directions:
First, you must make the wafer cookies and let them cool. That recipe is available above.

Next, you will make the buttercream filling. Simply add the butter, sugar, vanilla, and cream to a mixing bowl and mix with a hand mixer. It should take only a minute or two to reach the desired consistency.

If the filling is too soft, you can put it in the fridge to firm up before making your sandwich cookies.

Nettle Icebox Cake

Ingredients:
1 batch of nettle wafer cookies (see above)
2 cups heavy whipping cream
½ tsp vanilla extract
1 tbsp powdered sugar

Directions:
Begin by baking the cookies and allowing them to cool. That recipe is available above.

Once the cookies are cool, you can make the Chantilly cream. Pour the whipping cream, vanilla, and sugar into a large mixing bowl. Mix with a hand mixer until the cream is thick and holds its shape well in stiff peaks.

You can make the icebox cake in a loaf pan for ease, or on top of a platter for looks, that decision is entirely up to you. I typically opt for ease.

To make the cake, lay down a nice layer of Chantilly cream on the base. Add the cookies one at a time, standing vertically, with around ¼” of cream between them. Once all the cookies are placed, cover everything with the remaining Chantilly cream. Cover, and place in the refrigerator overnight.

Overnight, the Chantilly cream softens the cookies, and when you eat the icebox cake the following day it will have transformed into a truly magical dessert. Something so good you might also end up calling it “favorite dessert.”

Enjoy!

P.S. It comes out looking something of a mess, but I promise you that first bite is heavenly.