Shortbread
Shortbread is traditionally associated with Christmas time go give this recipe a try. Use good quality ingredients for the best result.
Ingredients:
- 115g butter, at room temperature
- 55g golden caster sugar
- Good pinch of salt
- 130g plain flour
- 40g ground rice (if you don’t have ground rice, fine semolina works well)
Demerara sugar, to finish
Method:
- Pre-heat the oven to 150C. Put the butter into a large mixing bowl, and beat with a wooden spoon until soft. Beat in the sugar and salt.
- Sift over the flour and ground rice and mix to a smooth dough; if it doesn’t come together, add a little more butter.
- Line a 15cm cake or tart tin with baking parchment, and pat, or lightly roll, the dough into a shape slightly smaller than the tin. Alternatively pat out to 1cm thickness and cut into biscuits and put on a lined baking tray. Christmas themed cutters make festive shaped shortbread biscuits.
- Put in the fridge to chill for 15 minutes until firm. (This step is important.)
- Bake for around an hour (about half that for biscuits) until cooked through, but not browned. Take out of the oven and cut into fingers, slices or squares.
- Allow to cool for a couple of minutes, then sprinkle with demerara sugar and transfer to a wire rack. Once cold, this should last for a good few days in an airtight container