...and what better biscuits than buttery, crumbly shortbread? They're a treat because they're SO full of butter, which makes them delish by default, and then, they have sugar on top. I feel like a fatty just thinking about them (it might have something to do with the fact that I already ate 2 pieces, just to "test" it).
I used Nigella Lawsons recipe from Forever Summer, which isn't a traditional shortbread recipe, but is a quick shortcut. Suits me down to the ground!! The end result doesn't taste anything like a shortcut has been taken, which suits me even more...
I dont have Nigellas book, so have gotten the recipe from the Baking with Gus blog, so go and have a look!
Heres the recipe
2/3 cup icing sugar
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour, preferably Italian 00
2/3 cup corn flour
3/4 cup (180g) plus 2 tablespoons very soft unsalted butter
seeds from 1 vanilla bean
vanilla or ordinary granulated sugar for sprinkling
Preheat the oven to 160C (325F).
Method
Put the icing sugar, flour and corn flour into the bowl of a food processor fitted with the metal blade and give them a quick blitz before adding the butter along with the vanilla seeds you’ve scraped out of a bean. Process again until the soft mixutre coheres and begins to form a ball, loosely clumping around the blade. Turn this out into a jelly roll pan and press to form an even (or as even as you can make it) layer, using fingers of the back of a spoon, or both.
Using the tip of a sharp knife cut the pressed-out shortbread into fingers. Use the tines of a fork to make little holds in each marked-out biscuit.
Bake for about 20-25 minutes, by which time the shortbread will be pale still, but not doughy.
Expect a little goldenness around the edges, but shortbread should be not crisp but melting.
Remove the pan from the oven and let cool for 10 minutes or so, before removing, with a palette knife and your fingers, to a wire rack.
Sprinkle with sugar and leave them to cool completely before storing in a tightly lidded tin.
