Walkers Shortbread Mini Rounds, Traditional Pure Butter Scottish Recipe, 11g (Pack of 200)

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Both work, it depends what you want to achieve. When using a biscuit cutter you always cut the dough before baking (and in this recipe the dough is cut into rectangles first), but there will always be a little spreading as the dough cooks. Scottish chef John Quigley, of Glasgow's Red Onion, describes shortbread as "the jewel in the crown" of Scottish baking. [21] Shortbread is as basic and simple as a cookie (biscuit) can get. But it’s also divinely delicious. And for that reason shortbread has been a favorite throughout the UK for hundreds of years. Chilling the dough before baking will help the shortbread keep their shape while cooking. In the oven, the dough will spread as the butter in the mixture melts, but baking it from chilled helps reduce this effect. It’s most important to do this if you are baking the shortbread in individual biscuits.

oz. plain flour ~ 2oz. caster sugar ~ 1 oz. icing sugar ~ 2 oz. rice flour ~ 5 oz. butter ~ pinch of salt

Shortbread or shortie is a traditional Scottish biscuit usually made from one part white sugar, two parts butter, and three to four parts plain wheat flour. Shortbread does not contain any leavening, such as baking powder or baking soda. Shortbread is widely associated with Christmas and Hogmanay festivities in Scotland, and some Scottish brands are exported around the world. Triangular wedges of shortbread became known as "petticoat tails", and this form of shortbread has become particularly associated with Mary, Queen of Scots. [6] It has been suggested that a French term for the wedges of shortbread was petits gâteaux or petites gatelles – little cakes, and this became "petticoat tails". It is now thought the Scots term derives from the decorated round edge of the segments which resemble petticoats. [7] Herbs: Mixing finely chopped herbs into the dough provides a subtle but herbaceous essence that is delightful. Herbs like rosemary, thyme, sage and lavender are my favourite. You can either buy caster sugar (it’s overpriced) or make you’re own, which is what I do. Super easy: Just put the sugar in a blender or coffee/spice grinder and pulse until it’s very fine.

I’ve read a few claims that “traditional” Scottish shortbread is made with farola: “Scottish Shortbread is traditionally made with farola, a free-flowing cream coloured and fine granular powder or flour milled from durum wheat.” But the oldest recipes I’ve researched do not, so this “tradition” may be a later/more contemporary one. The stiff dough retains its shape well during cooking. The biscuits are often patterned before cooking, usually with the tines of a fork or with a springerle-type mold. Shortbread is sometimes shaped into hearts and other shapes for special occasions. At this point stir in any add-ins if using (candied ginger, candied citrus peel, herbs, nuts, etc.)

How to Make Shortbread Cookies

We’re making Scottish shortbread the traditional way with just 3 ingredients: Flour, Sugar and Butter. Well, and a tiny pinch of salt, too. Nothing else is needed, no fancy ingredients, no flavor enhancers. The key to a good Scottish shortbread is the quality of the butter. That is what flavors the shortbread and the shortbread is only as good as the butter. Shortbread was expensive and reserved as a luxury for special occasions such as Christmas, Hogmanay (Scottish New Year's Eve), and weddings. In Scotland, it was traditional to break a decorated shortbread cake (infar-cake or dreaming bread) over the head of a new bride on the entrance of her new house. [9] [10] [11] Shortbread was also given as a gift. [3] Name [ edit ] Before we get started, if you want to take your shortbread to the next several flavor levels, try our traditional Scottish Millionaire’s Shortbread. With layers of shortbread, caramel and chocolate it is the ultimate indulgence! Be sure to measure flour correctly! All of my recipes are tested using the spoon and level method (more info through that link). Too much flour and cookie dough won’t hold together. In the UK tax code, shortbread is taxed as a flour confection (baked good) rather than as a common biscuit. [3] See also [ edit ]

Historic UK - heritage of Britain accommodation guide. "Scottish Shortbread". Historic-uk.com . Retrieved 2010-11-24. Millionaire's shortbread, also called caramel squares, is a modern variation, in which shortbread is topped with caramel and chocolate. [17] Cultural associations [ edit ] The more refined version of shortbread as we know it today is attributed to Scotland, in particular to Mary, Queen of Scots in the 16th century. She was particularly fond of what was known as Petticoat Tails, which was a thin shortbread baked in a large circle and cut into triangular segments. In her day the shortbread was commonly flavored with caraway seeds, which were all the rage in British baking for several centuries. In fact, the earliest published shortbread recipes from the 18th century were more elaborate than the standard shortbread today: They were baked with candied citrus peels and garnished with caraway comfits.Once you’ve added the flour, go easy on the dough (feel free to beat the butter and sugar together really well though). Only mix as much as is needed to incorporate the flour into the butter mixture – this is best done by hand as it’s easy to over process the dough when using an electric mixer. The dough should be quite crumbly. Challenge Butter— you can use unsalted or salted, but I prefer the additional flavor from salted butter Another key is using caster sugar. Not regular granulated sugar. Not powdered sugar. Caster sugar is very fine granulated sugar. Caster sugar is commonly used in British baking and it’s an all-around smarter choice than granulated. The reason is that the sugar crystals in granulated sugar are much larger and take longer to dissolve during baking and may not dissolve completely. Caster sugar dissolves more rapidly leaving a finer texture to the baked good. Shortbread originated in Scotland. [1] [2] Although it was prepared during much of the 12th century, and probably benefited from cultural exchange with French pastry chefs during the Auld Alliance between France and Scotland, [3] the refinement of shortbread is popularly credited to Mary, Queen of Scots in the 16th century. [4] Despite the enduring popular association, evidence for any connection between Mary and shortbread's origin is sparse. [5] You can choose to leave the shortbread plain (still delicious!), try all 4 variations, or choose just a few.