This recipe really speaks to the idea that time is just a construct. Chill for an amount of time that feels right. Bake for an amount of time that feels right. Who needs specific instructions, really? Isn’t baking always supposed to have the confusion of a Bake Off technical challenge? Is the almond optional? How big is a small ball? Is brown paper a type of paper or just a recommended color? Butcher? Paper bag? Parchment? Also this ratio of dry ingredients to wet seems insane so I’m intrigued by what’s going to physically happen with these cookies.
Original Recipe
- 1/2 lb butter
- 1/2 cup confectioners sugar
- 2 1/4 cups flour
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1/2 cup ground almonds
- additional confectioners sugar for coating
Cream butter and sugar, add sifted flour and salt and vanilla, ground almonds can be added at this time. Chill dough. Mold into small balls and bake at 350 til light brown. Remove to brown paper which has been sprinkled with confectioners sugar, and then sprinkle cookies with the sugar. Makes 3 dozen+.
Reflections
Once I made this recipe I did actually remember it. My grandparents kept them in one of those cookie tins that many people use to store sewing supplies. They were a top rated cookie around Christmas, up there with rum balls and way better than the store bought ginger snaps and fig newtons that got snuck in there. The sugar coating on the outside adds a different texture and breaks up the crumbliness of shortbread.
I chilled the dough in the fridge for 30 minutes and baked for 20. Instead of this whole brown paper situation I just rolled the cookies in a bowl of powdered sugar. The dry to wet ratio was totally fine, I tried not to over mix because I didn’t want to develop too much gluten and make them less short. I do think it’s key that the cookies are warm (not hot) when you roll them so that the sugar melts onto them. Of the shape and size options 2 out of 2 of my taste testers agreed that the smaller size was better because the bigger ones had a higher crumbly cookie to sugar coating ratio, but didn’t have strong opinions on the shape. The flat cookie is definitely the traditional shape and one of my tasters thought the round ones were snowballs but for me the round shape is nostalgic so that’s what I’m going with. I added some lemon and lavender to one version of the recipe and I’ll make those in the traditional shape; I wrote out two separate recipes but really it’s the same recipe one just has lemon and lavender.
Rolled Shortbread Recipe
Makes about 3-4 dozen
Ingredients
- 2 sticks (226 g) unsalted butter (room temp)
- ½ cup (63 g) confectioners sugar
- 2 ¼ (270 g) cups all purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- ½ cup (48 g) almond flour
- additional confectioners sugar for coating
Instructions
- In the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment or in a large mixing bowl with a handheld mixer cream the butter and sugar together. Start at the lowest speed to moisten the sugar and prevent it from getting everywhere then raise to medium to cream.
- Add flour, salt, vanilla and almond flour and beat at medium-low speed until just combined. Do not keep mixing.
- Turn dough onto plastic wrap, wrap and chill in refrigerator for at least 30 minutes but preferably 45. While dough is chilling preheat oven to 350℉.
- Roll dough into balls approximately 1 inch in diameter and place on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet. Cookies do not spread so they can be placed fairly close together. Bake for 20 minutes or until just turning golden brown on the edges.
- Cool on cookie sheet for approximately 5 minutes, until cool enough to touch but still warm. Meanwhile fill a bowl with powdered sugar. Roll each cookie in powdered sugar, coating thoroughly, and place on a cookie rack or serving platter.
Lavender Lemon Shortbread Recipe
Makes about 3-4 dozen
Ingredients
- 2 sticks (226 g) unsalted butter (room temp)
- ½ cup (63 g) confectioners sugar
- 1 ½ teaspoons dried lavender
- zest from 1 lemon
- 2 ¼ (270 g) cups all purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- ½ cup (48 g) almond flour
- additional confectioners sugar for coating
Optional: If you have butterfly pea flowers you can make a really pretty glaze by steeping them in hot water and mixing the strained water with powdered sugar, I did that on the lavender cookies so you can see it. Add some lemon juice (from your zested lemon) to the glaze to complement the cookie flavor and make color go more purple than blue.
Instructions
- In the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment or in a large mixing bowl with a handheld mixer cream the butter and sugar together. Start at the lowest speed to moisten the sugar and prevent it from getting everywhere then raise to medium to cream.
- Add lemon zest and crumble lavender into the butter and sugar and mix until evenly distributed. The butter will bind better with the oils that carry the lavender and lemon flavor if you add them before the flour.
- Add flour, salt, vanilla and almond flour and beat at medium-low speed until just combined. Do not keep mixing.
- Turn dough onto plastic wrap, shape into a log 1 to 1 ½ inches in diameter. Wrap and chill in refrigerator for at least 30 minutes but preferably 45. While dough is chilling preheat oven to 350℉.
- Slice log into ¼ inch slices and place on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet. Cookies do not spread so they can be placed fairly close together. Bake for 13-15 minutes or until just turning golden brown on the edges.
- Cool on cookie sheet for approximately 5 minutes, until cool enough to touch but still warm. Meanwhile fill a shallow bowl with powdered sugar. Dip each cookie in powdered sugar, coating both sides thoroughly, and place on a cookie rack or serving platter. If you make glaze you can drizzle it on top or dip the cookies in glaze. Since the glaze adds sugar I sprinkled sea salt on top with a little lavender.
vtx kitchen 