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Friday, December 16, 2011

Lessons in Shortbread

Ok, so not every recipe comes out as expected.

This was the first time I have tried a real shortbread. It has 3 easy ingredients. Took me about 10 minutes to mix up and 10 minutes to rollout, cut and bake.

Easy recipe, but I complicated things a bit.

I'm like that.

Three ingredients, butter, powdered sugar and flour.

I used this Shortbread Recipe from The Baked Life.

I even made only half a batch.

This is four sticks of butter with a half cup of powdered sugar. Seriously.

Cream them until the butter is fluffy. This took a few minutes. It is to incorporate the sugar with the butter fully.

After you mix in all your flour, turn it out on a floured surface, knead a few times and pop in the fridge for 20 minutes or so.

Preheat your oven to 300.


I played the easy route, I cut with a pizza cutter into diamond shapes.

The Baked Life uses pretty cookie cutters. They're gorgeous.

Here's where the trouble started. See, our oven is old and we are planning to renovate it in a year or so and get a new one.

But this old oven? The temperature gauge is very loose and right in front. When you walk by it or move by it, and lightly touch it, it moves like a greased weasel.

I bumped the temp. I bumped it sometime before I put in the first batch of cookies. I didn't realize it until they were close to half done.

They were boiling.

Like butter bubbling at the edges of the cookie boiling.

Major fail.

So, two sheets of the three came out like this.
I actually sifted through some of the worst ones. The fireman and I ate a few, too.

Just keepin' it real.
They actually still tasted like heaven. For real.

Did you see how much butter was in them? How could they not be good?

So, even the browned edges were fine. No biggy. The black ones got pitched.

I did correct the temperature for the last pan and they were perfect. Although a little crumbly. I think maybe they should have been slightly thicker.

But wow. I wish I could let you taste one. They are tender and crisp and the butter flavor is overwhelming.

The fireman and I couldn't stay out of them. They aren't terribly sweet, but just sweet enough. Nearly like pie crust, but sweet. *sigh*



And that rounds out the week of sugar cookies. They were fun, they were crazy, and my work has been overrun with the sweets I've baked this week.

I think they're happy!

The Recipe: (from The Baked Life)
2 cups unsalted butter
1 cup icing (powdered) sugar
5 cups flour

Beat butter and sugar until fluffy, five minutes. Mix in flour, one cup at a time, on low until completely mixed.
Turn out on floured surface and knead a few times. Refridgerate for 20 minutes.
Roll out, cut into desired shape and bake at 300 for 20 minutes.

P.S. Make sure your oven is really on 300. You'll thank me.

Next week: Candies! Fudge and Toffee for sure. Not what else yet. Probably not a new candy each day, but some fun holiday foods for sure.

Have a great weekend and bake something!

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

I bet they were yummy! I made the roll out molassess cookies today with the frosting and the pecan on top like your Great Grandma used to make. Turned out good! Keep baking.

Jana said...

All that butter! lol I'll bet they were scrumptious.