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Shortbread Cookie Recipe
A true Shortbread Cookie Recipe is the most basic of all cookie recipes. Butter, flour and sugar with maybe some salt. It has a crisp and yet crumbly texture and will absolutely melt in your mouth. This recipe is a version that is currently accepted as traditional Scottish shortbread. 
It's 3 parts flour, 2 parts butter and one part sugar. This recipe is for a small batch of cookies and the one I use for experimenting but it doubles or triples with no troubles. Just maintain the ratio. Shortbread Cookie Recipe3/4 cup flour, sifted Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Combine the flour, sugar and salt in a mixing bowl. Work in the butter with a fork or pastry cutter until the dough has the consistency of short crust. Pulsing in a food processor will work also. Sprinkle a board or your counter top lightly with flour. Turn the dough onto the board and knead until it's smooth. Refrigerate the dough for a couple of hours or overnight. You should have approximately 8 ounces of dough. Divide the dough into four equal portions for large cookies or eight equal portions for small cookies and shape into rounds. For consistency you might want to pull out your kitchen scales. Place each round on a parchment paper lined baking sheet and flatten them with the bottom of a glass to about 1/4 inch thickness. Prick with a fork. Bake at 350 degrees F. for 20 to 30 minutes, until the cookies begin to brown slightly. Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet. About The ButterButter is the only flavoring in this cookie. You get sweetness from the sugar and the flour gives it body but it's the butter that supplies the taste. All true shortbread cookie recipes should include butter. Not lard, not butter flavored shortening and definitely not margarine but honest to goodness butter. It should also be the freshest butter you can find. Since butter is the only flavoring you certainly don't want to use old tasting butter. I've seen shortbread cookie recipes that say to use European style butter. I've tried it and for my taste it's not worth the additional expense. I'll just stick to my good old standby Land 'O Lakes. The primary difference in American butter and European style butter is the butterfat content. The American standard is that butter is 80% butterfat. European style butter is anywhere from 83% to 86% butterfat. Try the European if you like but be prepared to take out a second mortgage on your house to buy it. Shortbread HistoryShortbread cookies are ancient. They started in Scotland way back when cooking, compared to today's standards, was crude at best. Of course they have evolved over time to what we know today. The original shortbread cookie recipe probably included oat flour but when the English adopted it they substituted wheat flour. In Tudor England oats were considered animal food. Traditional shortbread is baked in a round and then cut into wedges. The story has it that the ancient Scots baked shortbread in the winter months and put cuts in the shortbread rounds to represent the suns rays. I suppose this was some sort of ritual to persuade the sun to return and do away with the cold winter. The wintertime tradition holds on though because shortbread cookie recipes are among the most popular Christmas time cookie recipes. Shortbread Pans and Shortbread MoldsIf you would like to stick to the traditional round shortbread any round cake pan will do. Just press the dough in the pan and smooth out by pressing with any flat surface. However if you really want to get fancy go for some of the shortbread pans or shortbread molds that are available. You can probably find some interesting ones in your local cooking supply store but if not they're definitely available on the Internet. I've even found the traditional round handmade wooden molds notched at the edges to signify the sun's rays. I've also found ceramic molds in all sizes, shapes and decorations. Using a mold for your shortbread cookie recipe is not difficult. Just be sure to dust it with powdered sugar before filling and refrigerate for a time before baking. The powdered sugar dusting will ensure an easy release from the mold and the refrigeration will help the dough maintain its design during baking. More Shortbread Cookie Recipes:Pistachio ShortbreadPistachio Shortbread is one of my favorite shortbread cookies. This shortbread recipe calls for unsalted pistachios but I've use salted and roasted with excellent results. Just leave out the salt. Toffee Shortbread RecipeThis first Toffee Shortbread Recipe has a hint of buttery toffee along with the crunch of almonds. The cornstarch in this shortbread recipe gives it a delicate texture that melts in your mouth. Almond Shortbread With Almond Butter IcingThis Almond Shortbread is already melt in your mouth delicious but when you add the Almond Butter Icing it is truly over the top. The shortbread and the almond icing are both very easy to make. Basic Scottish ShortbreadThis first Basic Scottish Shortbread Cookie Recipe uses a mixture of 75 percent flour and 25 percent cornstarch. Chocolate Shortbread CookieHere are a few variations of a Chocolate Shortbread Cookie. The first uses unsweetened cocoa powder and coffee extract. Hawaiian Shortbread CookieThese two Hawaiian Shortbread Cookie Recipes are simply shortbread variations. Lemon Shortbread CookiesThis Lemon Shortbread Cookies recipe makes a wonderfully rich, buttery shortbread cookie with a subtle lemon flavor. Mexican Wedding CookieA Mexican wedding cookie is a shortbread type cookie with the addition of vanilla and roasted, finely chopped pecans. Pecan Sandies RecipeThis Pecan Sandies Recipe is a shortbread type cookie. Scottish Shortbread FingersScottish Shortbread Fingers are just basic Scottish Shortbread dough in finger-sized pieces. Pecan Shortbread CookieTake basic shortbread cookie dough and add pecans and you have a Pecan Shortbread Cookie. Shortbread CrustShortbread cookie dough makes a great Shortbread Crust. Whipped Shortbread CookieA Whipped Shortbread Cookie is a variation of a traditional Scottish shortbread cookie. Caramel Shortbread SquaresMake these Caramel Shortbread Squares and amaze your friends with the wonderful things that come out of your oven! This is a very simple recipe for a very delicious shortbread squares. More Shortbread Cookie RecipesScottish Shortbread Cookie Recipe You Might Need: |
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