I grew up in the most anglophile French household I know, where the paperbacks strewn about the coffee table often bore little penguins, where the parents used English as a secret language when they didn’t want their daughters to understand, and where sending them to England every summer sounded like a good idea (that question is still up for debate; in any case, there went the secret language).
Food-wise, it meant that fried eggs frequently came with Worcestershire sauce and bacon (and even bangers if we were lucky), that fromage blanc was liberally doused with Golden Syrup, and that Christmas wouldn’t have been Christmas without my mother’s marzipan-topped Christmas cake, prepared and left to ripen weeks in advance.
It also meant that shopping expeditions to the Boulevard Haussmann department stores always ended with a quick run through Marks & Sparks‘ food section for tea, English muffins, stem ginger biscuits, hot cross buns, mincemeat pies, cole slaw, ready-made Indian dishes, and even bangers if we were lucky. Oh, and shortbread, too, which disappeared at a speed proportional to their butter content.
By the time Marks & Spencer decided to stab us in the heart and close their French stores (over some futile reason like not making any profit) it had become fairly easy to find British goods of all kinds in even the most ordinary of grocery stores in Paris. But when it comes to shortbread, I’d discovered that baking your own was even easier — and much more gratifying, too, in that call-me-Delia sort of way.
The following recipe uses stone-ground cornmeal to produce the supernal crunchy note any self-respecting shortbread should present. It results in an obviously buttery* but not overly sweet shortbread that you may choose to grace with a hint of vanilla or citrus zest. There is no law against piling on the chocolate chips and dried fruits and nuts and bells and whistles, but I am of the mind that simple is best.
* Do use the very best butter you can find; if there is one recipe that will showcase it in all its glory, this is it.
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Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 45 minutes
Ingredients
- 150 grams (5 1/3 ounces or 2/3 cup) top-quality European-style semi-salted butter (I use Bordier's beurre demi-sel; substitute top-quality European-style unsalted butter, plus a fat pinch of fleur de sel or kosher salt)
- 70 grams (1/3 cup) sugar
- The seeds scraped from one vanilla bean or 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract or 1 teaspoon (loosely packed) freshly grated, finely chopped citrus zest from an organic fruit
- 70 grams (7 tablespoons) stone-ground cornmeal (in France, Italian épiceries and organic stores sell it as farine de maïs or polenta)
- 150 grams (1 1/4 cup) all-purpose flour, sifted
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 150°C (300°F)
- In the bowl of a food processor (or by hand, in a medium mixing-bowl, with a sturdy rubber spatula) cream together the butter, sugar, and vanilla or zest, if using. Add the cornmeal and mix until combined. Add the flour and process until just combined.
- Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface, knead for a few seconds until smooth, and gather into a ball. Press the dough with the heels of your hands into a pan (or see note below), preferably nonstick with a removable bottom: I use a fluted rectangular tart pan like this one, but a 20-cm (8-inch) round pan would work too.
- Level out the surface with the back of a tablespoon and prick holes all over the dough (I use my chocolate dipping fork).
- Bake for 30 to 40 minutes, until lightly golden.
- Transfer to a cooling rack, mark rectangular or square or triangular pieces using a sharp knife (be gentle so as not to ruin the nonstick coating of your pan) while still hot and malleable, and let cool completely. Separate the pieces and serve. Try to exercise restraint; shortbread tastes even better the next day.
Notes
- Do not try to make the holes or the pieces too regular. It is their very imperfection that makes them appealing.
- Alternatively, you can spread the dough thickly on a lightly floured surface, cut out shapes using a cookie cutter, and arrange them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Reduce the baking time accordingly.
https://cnz.to/recipes/cookies-small-cakes/shortbread-recipe/
Unless otherwise noted, all recipes are copyright Clotilde Dusoulier.
FAQs
The key with shortbread is not to overhandle it. Make the dough exactly as instructed, but don't mess around making shapes or over rolling the dough - you will end up with delicious but tough biscuits. Stretching and pulling the dough activates the gluten in the flour, making chewy cookies and not crisp ones.
What is the secret to making good shortbread cookies? ›
Tips To Make the Best Shortbread Cookies
- Choose High Quality Butter. No matter what brand of butter you buy, if it's real butter, you can rest assured that it's the best. ...
- Keep Ingredients Simple. ...
- Add Flavor. ...
- Don't Overwork. ...
- Shape Dough. ...
- Chill Before Baking. ...
- Bake Until Golden. ...
- Add Finishing Touches.
The most common mistakes when making shortbread are over-working the dough, and incorporating too much flour. The less you work the dough, the more crumbly and melt-in-your-mouth your shortbread cookies will be.
What's the difference between Scottish shortbread and regular shortbread? ›
As mentioned above, the main differences between the two styles of cookies are butter content and inclusion of leavening agents. These differences result in very different texture and taste experiences. No matter your preference, you can be sure to get a quality product from Walkers Shortbread.
What happens if you don't chill shortbread dough? ›
But in this shortbread cookie recipe, it really makes a difference. Chilling the dough helps the cookies hold their shape. If you don't chill your shortbread dough, the cookies will spread as they bake.
What are the disadvantages of shortbread? ›
Sugar provides a fast source of energy. There are rarely any artificial additives. Cons: Shortbread is a weight watcher's nightmare because it is extremely high in saturated fat and calories. Saturated fat is the 'bad' fat which is linked to artery-clogging high cholesterol and heart disease.
Should you refrigerate shortbread dough before baking? ›
After shaping the cookies, don't rush to the oven! Instead, chill the dough in the refrigerator for 30 minutes or so (overnight is OK, too). A short stay in the fridge will firm up the cookies and solidify the butter. This will help keep them from spreading too much.
What is the difference between a butter cookie and a shortbread cookie? ›
Compared to butter cookies, shortbread uses a higher ratio of butter to flour, and is baked at a lower temperature. This gives it its signature delicate consistency that crumbles in the mouth when bitten. It's also often baked in a pan and cut up after baking, rather than being cut into shapes before baking.
Does butter need to be cold for shortbread? ›
Should butter be cold or room temperature for making shortbread? Always start with cold butter straight from the refrigerator. This will keep the dough from warming up, making it greasy and difficult to roll out.
Why does shortbread have holes in the top? ›
The word "bread" comes from "biscuit bread" which was made from leftover bread dough that was sweetened and dried out in the oven to make biscuits. Why do you poke holes in shortbread? The holes allow the moisture to escape during baking and more even heat distribution. This helps dry out and crisp up the cookies.
Butter is an emulsifier and it makes cookies tender. It also adds in the crispy-around-the-edges element. Adding too much butter can cause the cookies to be flat and greasy. Adding too little butter can cause the cookies to be tough and crumbly.
What happens if you put too much butter in shortbread? ›
Greasy mess: Extra butter means more fat, making the dough greasy and difficult to handle. Spreading like crazy: Cookies lose their shape, spreading thin and flat instead of staying nice and round. Uneven baking: The excess fat can burn easily on the edges while leaving the center undercooked.
What is shortbread called in Scotland? ›
Triangular wedges of shortbread became known as "petticoat tails", and this form of shortbread has become particularly associated with Mary, Queen of Scots. It has been suggested that a French term for the wedges of shortbread was petit* gâteaux or petites gatelles – little cakes, and this became "petticoat tails".
Should shortbread be crunchy or soft? ›
Shortbread should always have a tender, melting texture, but be slightly crisp when you bite into it. It should not generally be damp or wet underneath. A classic shortbread recipe will also only have flour, butter and sugar as the ingredients (in a 3:2:1 ratio) and not egg, which could lead to excess moisture.
What do Americans call shortbread? ›
Shortbread isn't a bread, it's what we Americans call a cookie. It its homeland across the pond it's a biscuit. The short part of the name is because it's made with a dough rich in fat (preferably really good butter). This is called short dough.
Should butter be cold when making shortbread? ›
Should butter be cold or room temperature for making shortbread? Always start with cold butter straight from the refrigerator. This will keep the dough from warming up, making it greasy and difficult to roll out.
What happens if you overwork shortbread? ›
It's important to avoid over-mixing shortbread dough, which will develop gluten and make the finished product tough, not tender. To make sure that the flour mixes completely with little effort, sift the flour first to get out all of the lumps.
Should shortbread be cold before baking? ›
Baking Shortbread Cookies
Place the cookies at least 2 inches apart on the prepared sheet pans and sprinkle remaining 2 tablespoons of granulated sugar evenly over each cookie. The dough should still be cool and firm to the touch. If it's not, chill both sheet pans in the freezer for at least 10 minutes before baking.
