Classic Shortbread Recipes

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Sift together flour and salt into a medium bowl. Beat butter with a mixer on medium-high speed until fluffy, 3 to 5 minutes, scraping down sides of bowl with a rubber spatula as needed. Add sugar gradually, beating between additions; continue to beat until mixture is very pale, about 2 minutes total. Reduce speed to low, and add flour mixture; beat until just combined.
• Press dough evenly into a parchment-lined 9-by-13-inch rimmed baking sheet; refrigerate until firm, about 20 minutes. Cut dough in eighths lengthwise, then quarters crosswise, making 32 rectangles. Evenly pierce all over with a skewer.
• Bake until shortbread is firm in center and golden brown, 50 minutes to 1 hour. Transfer pan to a wire rack; immediately recut rectangles with a paring knife. Let shortbread cool completely in pan.

Steps:

• Position an oven rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 325 degrees F. Butter a 9-by-12-1/2-inch jelly roll pan and line it with parchment, then butter the paper.
• Whisk together the flour, cornstarch and salt in a bowl. Beat the butter and sugar with an electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy, 5 to 7 minutes. Slowly add the flour mixture and beat on low until the dough is just combined; do not overwork.
• Transfer the dough to the prepared pan, spreading it out as evenly as possible with a spatula. Cover with plastic wrap, then use your hands to press and flatten the dough into a smooth even layer. Remove the plastic and cut the dough with a sharp knife into approximately 1-by-3-inch bars. Use a fork to prick a decorative pattern into the tops.
• Bake, rotating the pan from front to back halfway through, until golden, 60 to 70 minutes. Let stand for 5 minutes in the pan, then re-cut the bars along the previous cuts. Carefully lift the bars off the parchment with a small spatula and transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely. Store the cookies in an airtight container for up to 5 days.

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
• Add the flour, salt, and powdered sugar to a food processor and pulse to combine. Add in the vanilla, the butter and the 1 teaspoon of water. Pulse together just until a dough is formed. Put the dough on a sheet of plastic wrap and roll into a log, about 2 1/2 inches in diameter and 5 inches long. Tightly twist each end of the wrap in opposite directions. Chill the dough in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.
• Slice the log into 1/3-inch thick disks. Arrange on nonstick cookie sheets, parchment lined or silpat lined baking sheets, 2 inches apart. Bake until the edges are just light brown, about 12 to 14 minutes, rotating the pans half way through the baking process. Remove from the oven and let cool on the cookie sheets for 5 minutes. Transfer to wire racks and cool until room temperature. Enjoy!
• Variations:
• Pulse together the tea with the flour and salt in a food processor just until the tea is in small pieces evenly distributed throughout the flour. Then add the powdered sugar, vanilla, the butter and the 1 teaspoon of water. Continue as instructed above.
• Pulse the toasted and chopped pecans into the dough and then shape into a flattened round disk. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour. On a flour dusted surface, roll the dough out to approximately 1/3-inch thick. (If the dough is too hard to roll or begins to crack, let it rest at room temperature for a few minutes until pliable.) With a sharp knife, cut the dough into rectangle shapes about 1 by 3-inches. Arrange on the prepared baking sheets and follow the cooking instructions as above. Dust slightly cooled cookies with powdered sugar through a fine mesh strainer.

Steps:

• Place the butter and 140g sugar in a food processor and whizz until smooth.
• Tip in both the flours and a pinch of salt, then whizz until mixture comes together.
• Using your hands, roughly spread the mixture out in a 20 x 30 x 4cm baking tray. Cover with cling film and smooth over until there are no wrinkles. Place in the fridge, uncooked, for at least 30 mins and up to 2 days.
• Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Remove cling film, then lightly mark the shortbread all over with a fork.
• Sprinkle with the remaining sugar, then bake for 20-25 mins.
• Leave to cool in the tin, then cut into 24 thin slices. Shortbread will keep in an airtight container for up to 1 week.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 300 degrees, with rack in upper third. Sift flour and salt into a bowl; set aside. Put butter into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix on medium-high speed until fluffy, 3 to 5 minutes, scraping down sides of bowl. Gradually add sugar; beat until pale and fluffy, about 2 minutes.
• Reduce speed to low. Add flour mixture all at once; mix until just combined.
• Butter a 10-inch round springform or cake pan. Using plastic wrap, press dough evenly into pan. With plastic on dough, refrigerate 20 minutes.
• Cut dough into 8 wedges with a paring knife. Using a wooden skewer, prick all over at 1/4-inch intervals.
• Bake until golden brown and firm in center, about 1 hour. Transfer pan to a wire rack. Recut shortbread into wedges; let cool completely in pan. Can be stored in an airtight container up to 2 weeks.

Steps:

• Cream butter until it is light.
• Cream in powdered sugar and then vanilla.
• Work in flour.
• Knead the dough on an unfloured board until smooth.
• Spray shortbread pan very lightly with non-stick vegetable oil spray.
• Firmly press the dough into the shortbread pan.
• Prick the entire surface with a fork and bake in pan at 325 for 30-35 minutes or until lightly browned.
• Remove from oven and let cool in pan for about 10 min.
• Loosen edges with a knife and flip pan over onto a wooden cutting board.
• If shortbread doesn't come right out, tap one edge of the pan.
• Cut shortbread into serving pieces while it is warm.

Steps:

• 1. Preheat the oven to 325°F. Place the sugar in a small bowl.
• 2. Cut the log into twenty 1/2-inch rounds. Dip one cut surface of each of the rounds into the sugar and arrange them 2 inches apart on all sides on a parchment-lined or nonstick cookie sheet or sheets.
• 3. Bake until golden brown, 15 to 20 minutes. Cool the cookies on a wire rack.

Steps:

• Beat butter until fluffy in a large bowl.
• Beat in sugar, egg, lemon extract and lemon rind.
• Combine flour, cornmeal and salt. Gradually add to butter mixture, mixing well.
• Shape dough into a log about 2 inches in diameter. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm, about 3 hours. (Can also freeze at this point. Frozen dough keeps for 3 months).
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease cookie sheets.
• Cut dough into 1/4 inch thick slices.
• Bake on greased cookie sheets until cookie just begin to brown at the edges, about ten minutes.
• Remove from pan and cool on wire racks.
• For glaze, beat butter, confectioner's sugar and lemon juice to make a thin glaze. Drizzle over cooled cookies.