Shortbread is one of those perfect desserts. It's simple but can be elegant at the same time. It requires only four ingredients - butter, flour, sugar, and salt - so it's easy to whip up a batch any time you're in the mood to bake. And as an added bonus, it's one of those things that the baker can truly make their own. They can choose whether or not to shape the shortbread, decorate it, and even choose the texture they're after.
But if baking is the exact science that can intimidate some in the kitchen, shortbread can sometimes be enough to make one break out into a sweat. And the fact that there are so many shortbread connosieurs out there just waiting to tell you how not all shortbreads are created equal doesn't help. But it's time to wipe the sweat off your brow and get ready to make the best shortbread you've ever eaten. It's much easier when you follow the below tips.
Advertisement
1. Use butter that is soft, but not melted
Shutterstock
Butter is the backbone of any shortbread recipe. And in order to make sure that backbone helps uphold the shortbread the way it's supposed to, is to make sure it is soft. If the butter is too hard, it won't easily incorporate into the shortbread mixture and that will result in overworked dough. Dough that has been overworked is a surefire way to get tough shortbread - something no shortbread should ever be.
Some bakers make their rock-hard butter softer by placing it into a microwave or melting it slowly over the stove. But these practices also shouldn't be done. Melted butter will result in tough dough as well, as the flour will absorb it too quickly, and unevenly.
The best way to make sure your butter is perfect is to just take it out of the fridge several hours before you intend to bake. If you know the day before that the next day is going to be a baking day, you can leave your butter out on the counter overnight and it will be the perfect temperature whenever you're ready.
2. Cream the butter and sugar together very well
To be honest this is a trick you can use for shortbread, and for any other cookie recipe you bake. Most cookie recipes, including shortbread, call for the butter and sugar to be creamed together anywhere from two to five minutes. But to get the best shortbread, you should increase that time up to as much as ten minutes.
To be honest this is a trick you can use for shortbread, and for any other cookie recipe you bake. Most cookie recipes, including shortbread, call for the butter and sugar to be creamed together anywhere from two to five minutes. But to get the best shortbread, you should increase that time up to as much as ten minutes.
Doing this allows the sugar and butter to really incorporate with each other and become one, if you will. This makes it much easier to mix these two ingredients with the flour without overworking the dough. And the step of creaming the butter and sugar together is the only step of any shortbread recipe where you actually can't overwork it. So start that mixer and then go get yourself a cup of coffee. You've got some time.
3. Chill your dough twice
Chilling the shortbread dough is incredibly important. And it needs to be done twice - once before you shape the dough, and once after. And neither of these steps can be overlooked, even if you're just placing the shortbread into a square baking dish with the intention of slicing it into chunky squares or rectangles.
Chilling the shortbread dough is incredibly important. And it needs to be done twice - once before you shape the dough, and once after. And neither of these steps can be overlooked, even if you're just placing the shortbread into a square baking dish with the intention of slicing it into chunky squares or rectangles.
Not only will this help the shortbread keep its shape, but it also helps the butter become cold again and firm up. This is important because the butter needs to slowly melt while in the oven, which will make that shortbread light and flaky. Once the shortbread dough has come together, place the dough into the fridge for a couple of hours. Then take it out and shape it, or press it into your baking dish, and then place it into the fridge for another couple of hours. Once it's firmed up again, it will be ready for the oven.
4. Control the salt
Shortbread is a sweet treat, but like most baked goods it still needs a little bit of salt to balance out that sweetness. Most recipes will tell you how much salt to use, but this is something that you may need to play around with a bit to determine how much salt you like in your shortbread. Some like just a little, and some like a little more.
Shortbread is a sweet treat, but like most baked goods it still needs a little bit of salt to balance out that sweetness. Most recipes will tell you how much salt to use, but this is something that you may need to play around with a bit to determine how much salt you like in your shortbread. Some like just a little, and some like a little more.
To make it easier for you to control the amount of salt in the recipe, always use unsalted butter. Again, this is something most baking recipes call for and although salted butter will work just fine, using unsalted will keep you in full control of how much salt is in your batch of shortbread.
5. Cook at a low temperature
Traditionally shortbread should be kept snow white with very little color on it at all. In order to achieve this, but still make sure the shortbread is entirely cooked through, you need to cook it at a low temperature. Typically shortbread should be cooked at around 300 degrees Fahrenheit. In addition to not getting too brown, cooking shortbread at a low temperature will also help the starch set as the butter melts. And if that butter melts too quickly, the cookies will melt too, resulting in misshapen cookies.
Traditionally shortbread should be kept snow white with very little color on it at all. In order to achieve this, but still make sure the shortbread is entirely cooked through, you need to cook it at a low temperature. Typically shortbread should be cooked at around 300 degrees Fahrenheit. In addition to not getting too brown, cooking shortbread at a low temperature will also help the starch set as the butter melts. And if that butter melts too quickly, the cookies will melt too, resulting in misshapen cookies.
6. Pierce the shortbread with a fork
You may be familiar with the small holes that can be found on top of just about any shortbread; and these are for more than just decoration. Poking holes in the top of the shortbread dough allows the heat to evenly penetrate the dessert, which helps it bake evenly. Making sure your shortbread is evenly cooked through will ensure that you don't end up with parts that are still not entirely cooked and some parts that are overcooked and dry.
You may be familiar with the small holes that can be found on top of just about any shortbread; and these are for more than just decoration. Poking holes in the top of the shortbread dough allows the heat to evenly penetrate the dessert, which helps it bake evenly. Making sure your shortbread is evenly cooked through will ensure that you don't end up with parts that are still not entirely cooked and some parts that are overcooked and dry.
Advertisement
To pierce your shortbread, simply take a fork and poke holes throughout the surface of the shortbread just before you place it into the oven.