Oh, shortbread! Why are you so tasty?
You are but flour, butter and sugar, yet so much more than the sum of your parts.
Some recipes are complicated with ingredients and techniques for no good reason. My aim is always to reduce effort without reducing deliciousness. I’m sure there is an equation that shows the tipping point where the amount of faff cancels out the total tastiness quotient.
On your behalf (and, okay, also to increase my shortbread intake) I experimented with different elements to try to reach that perfect balance of simplicity and loveliness, adding vanilla for comfort factor, cornflour for melt in the mouth action and semolina for sandy crunch and non-stickness. I realise I am contradicting myself by adding a little complexity to what can be a 3 ingredient recipe, but I think it’s worth it.
I do still need to re-assess my dividing technique though, because 8 slices into 3 of us just doesn’t go. We fight over the last slices for after-school-snack or post-work-pick-me-up-with-a-cup-of-tea requirements.
But re-testing the recipe is hardly a bind. I can blast up a batch in the food processor while the kettle boils, then as soon as it’s cooled it starts to magically disappear.
We always had tartan tins of shortbread around at Christmas when I was a child. I loved it then, either in petticoat tails or stumpy shortbread fingers.
The bonus of making it in a tart tin means you can just squidge it in there with gay abandon and without all the nonsense of rolling or cutting. Simple.
Let me know if you try it.
Things{we}make Simple Shortbread
Ingredients
- 150g Soft Butter
- 75g Icing Sugar
- ½ tsp Vanilla Bean Paste
- 120g Plain Flour
- 30g Semolina (see note below)
- 75g Cornflour
- A pinch of salt
- A little caster sugar
Notes
- You can replace the semolina with 30g more flour for a slightly denser but still lovely biscuit.
- If you haven’t got a tart tin to fit, just press or roll the dough into a round, about 8″ across on a greased, baking tray. You won’t have such neat edges but who’s looking at your edges when you’ve got a sugary top?
Method
- Grease a loose bottomed 20cm/8″ tart tin and dust with a little flour or semolina.
- Preheat your oven to 160°c.
- In a food processor blitz the butter, vanilla and icing sugar together until light and creamy.
- Add the flour, cornflour, semolina and salt and process again until blended, scraping around the bowl at least once to make sure there are no stray buttery bits.
- Press the dough into a tin with floury fingers and smooth with the back of a spoon.
- Sprinkle with caster sugar.
- Press around the edge with a fork or a floured finger.
- Divide the dough into 8-10 sections and prong each one with a fork.
- Bake for around 25-30 minutes until blonde…not brown. (28 mins in my oven)
- You can gently re-cut the dividing lines in the shortbread when it comes out of the oven.
- Sprinkle with a little more caster sugar while it’s hot.
- Cool for 20 minutes then push it out of the tin and cool on a rack.
Chaya
May 22, 2014
A great basic recipe to have! I’d top it with berries and whipped cream.
custardorcream
May 22, 2014
Love your post. Love shortbread and posted recently on my blog http://www.custardorcream.com about the joys of shortbread
Christina
May 22, 2014
Shortbread is my favorite cookie of all time!
Christina
http://www.foodiewithalife.com
SandysJar
May 22, 2014
Reblogged this on My Blog and commented:
Easy, that is the best
Sarah | The Sugar Hit
May 23, 2014
Gawwwwgeous as usual, Claire! And may I say, I bloody love shortbread, and that combo of cornflour and semolina sounds like perfection.
richa0112
May 23, 2014
Semolina, that’s great. I guess it will give more crisp texture to shortbread. Asking this as i have never used it before in shortbread 🙂
thingswemake.co.uk
May 23, 2014
Hi, yes it gives it an extra crunch and makes the texture a bit looser.
richa0112
May 23, 2014
Thanks 🙂
cathyandchucky
May 23, 2014
Yummy! I make a really nice gluten free macadamia nut shortbread and that goes very quickly too 🙂
Sally
May 26, 2014
I always forget about making shortbread – it’s so delicious (as are your pics).
mommycookforme
May 26, 2014
Shortbread looks delicious and sweet! Thanks for your sharing.
thefolia
May 27, 2014
Viva la tart tins, especially when you find them at the flea! Happy Nesting
Food Seamstress
May 27, 2014
If i could of liked this twice i would have. Great photography and so well written. Everything makes me smile. High five guys.
thingswemake.co.uk
May 27, 2014
Ah, thanks Food Seamstress! A very kind comment.
cakebombme
May 28, 2014
Strongly agree! Shortbread is so delicious. Nice recipe too – semolina and cornflour make it so, so short!
mrsbigsi
June 5, 2014
Claire i must have made this 4 times since you blogged it – people keep asking for it again and again! Tonight i am going to make it yet again and use it as a base for millionaires shortbread 🙂 Watch this space…….
Aadeeti
June 7, 2014
I tried this at home!! It was a great success 🙂 🙂
The shortbread just melts in your mouth!!! HEAVEN!!
anna @ annamayeveryday
June 9, 2014
You can’t beat a piece of shortbread, sometimes the simple things are the best.
pattylovesbaking
July 17, 2014
I love shortbread, simple and tasty! I’ve just tried to do something similar on my blog 🙂