Shortbread

I was recently talking to a friend who asked me to post a recipe for shortbread. He didn't have to ask me twice because I love the taste of shortbread and it is incredibly easy to make! The other great thing about shortbread is its versatility when it comes to flavor; you can mix it up in all kinds of variations.

P.S. I love when friends suggest recipes that they would like for me to share here.

Ingredients:

2 sticks of butter, room temperature

2/3 cup powdered sugar

2 cups flour

½ teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon vanilla

Possible add-ins: citrus zest or peel, mini chocolate chips, dried lavender, cinnamon, ginger, chopped nuts, chopped dried fruit, candy sprinkles, poppy seeds, etc. (Don't worry too much about measurements – just experiment.)

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. In a stand mixer or with a hand-held mixer, cream together the butter and sugar on low speed to avoid incorporating a lot of air into the dough. Add the salt and then add the flour a bit at a time, just until it is fully incorporated. Add the vanilla. Do not overbeat.

Butter a 9-inch round or 8 by 8-inch square pan and pat the dough into it. Alternatively, you can press the dough out onto a parchment-lined baking sheet to ¼-inch thickness to be cut into strips or circles after baking. (For the circles pictured here, I pressed small amounts of dough into a 2-inch cookie cutter and then pushed the circle out to repeat the process with the rest of the dough.) Regardless of the shape that you choose, prick the top of the dough all over with a fork and then bake for 18 to 35 minutes. I have given a wide timespan here because the baking time depends on the shape/thickness of your dough. Individual circles will be done in approximately 18-20 minutes while a ¼-inch layer of dough for strips or dough pressed into a pan will take anywhere from 25 to 35 minutes to bake. The surface of the shortbread should look dry and the edges should be a light golden brown. Let cool for a few minutes and then use a sharp knife to cut the shortbread into wedges, strips, circles, etc.

For the shortbread pictured with chocolate, I simply melted a small amount of chocolate chips and drizzled it over the cookies.

Source: I found this shortbread recipe in the 2008 Winter issue of Lawrence Magazine.