Scottish Shortbread • Authentic recipe! (2024)

FAQs

What is the difference between Scottish shortbread and regular shortbread? ›

Traditional Scottish shortbread is a simple recipe made with sugar, butter, flour, and salt. Other shortbread styles will include leavening agents like baking powder and baking soda, which makes them crisp instead of crumbly like traditional Scottish shortbread.

Nevis Bakery's all butter, melt-in-the-mouth shortbread biscuits topped with sweet, crunchy demerara sugar. Winning 3 Gold stars and best Scottish Speciality at the Great Taste Awards in 2009. Made in the shadow of Ben Nevis near Fort William.

Shortbread is a centuries old traditional Scottish biscuit made from butter, sugar, and flour. In fact the first written recipe dates back to 1736. The 'short' in the name comes from the baking term 'short' which just means it has a high percentage of fat.

The most common mistakes when making shortbread are over-working the dough, and incorporating too much flour. The less you work the dough, the more crumbly and melt-in-your-mouth your shortbread cookies will be.

Cornstarch provides the shortbread with structure, but its biggest job is keeping the cookies extra soft, tender, and light. I love adding a small amount to chocolate chip cookies too. Optional Coarse Sugar Topping: For an optional sparkly crunch on your shortbread wedges, add a sprinkle of coarse sugar before baking.

Takeaway: look for recipes that use granulated sugar for a more crisp-style shortbread and powdered sugar for a more tender shortbread!

-Chill unbaked shortbread cookies in the fridge for 30 minutes prior to baking in a 350 degree oven for 12-18 minutes. (Check on them at 10 minutes and ever 2 minutes thereafter.)

Always start with cold butter straight from the refrigerator. This will keep the dough from warming up, making it greasy and difficult to roll out. If the dough does get soft or sticky as you're rolling or cutting it, just put it back in the refrigerator for 10-15 minutes to chill the butter.

Walker's Shortbread is honoured to carry a Royal Warrant, granted by Her Majesty the Queen, for the supply of Shortbread and Oatcakes. Walker's Shortbread is a gift fit for a king, and a treat befitting any special occasion.

Why is Scottish shortbread called petticoat tails? ›

It has been suggested that a French term for the wedges of shortbread was petit* gâteaux or petites gatelles – little cakes, and this became "petticoat tails". It is now thought the Scots term derives from the decorated round edge of the segments which resemble petticoats.

Best Butter for Specialty Baking: Kerrygold Pure Irish Butter. The higher fat percentage in European butters, like Kerrygold and Plugra, is ideal if you're working with pastries where the quality of your dough is directly effected by the quality of your butter.

Irish Shortbread Is Distinct From Scottish Shortbread

As cornstarch is a potent thickener relative to flour, this creates a denser cookie. Whichever version of shortbread you prefer, though, the original -- which is often just called "shortbread" -- came from Scotland.

The high butter quantity in shortbread (one part sugar to two parts butter) gives it that delightfully crumbly feel. And also its name. This is because the old meaning of the world “short” reflects this crumbliness and so the name 'shortbread' stuck.

Shortbread is generally done baking when it starts to turn a slight golden brown, especially along the edges (if it's dark brown to black, you've cooked it too long, and if it's still white throughout you haven't baked it long enough).

Shortbread originated in Scotland. Although it was prepared during much of the 12th century, and probably benefited from cultural exchange with French pastry chefs during the Auld Alliance between France and Scotland, the refinement of shortbread is popularly credited to Mary, Queen of Scots in the 16th century.

Shortbread is similar to shortcake but doesn't include baking powder. Lots of rich butter gives shortbread a high fat content, resulting in a fine, crumbly texture. Shortcake and shortbread biscuits are delicious on their own, with fruit and cream, or simply topped with a delicate dusting of sugar.

Figure In More Fat. While Ina Garten adds a bit of water to solve the crumbly shortbread conundrum, that's not the only solution to try. Sometimes, dry shortbread occurs because you don't have enough fat in your dough. Fat, and namely butter, helps to retain moisture and give the dough its consistency.