Scottish Shortbread - My Gorgeous Recipes (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.

The most common mistakes when making shortbread are over-working the dough, and incorporating too much flour.

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.

But in this shortbread cookie recipe, it really makes a difference. Chilling the dough helps the cookies hold their shape. If you don't chill your shortbread dough, the cookies will spread as they bake.

Triangular wedges of shortbread became known as "petticoat tails", and this form of shortbread has become particularly associated with Mary, Queen of Scots. 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".

The key with shortbread is not to overhandle it. Make the dough exactly as instructed, but don't mess around making shapes or over rolling the dough - you will end up with delicious but tough biscuits. Stretching and pulling the dough activates the gluten in the flour, making chewy cookies and not crisp ones.

Why do you put shortbread cut-out cookies in the fridge before baking? This is to resolidify the butter. The butter is at room temperature when making the dough resulting in a soft dough. If baked straight away, the butter would melt away immediately when hitting the hot oven and the shortbread would spread.

The word "bread" comes from "biscuit bread" which was made from leftover bread dough that was sweetened and dried out in the oven to make biscuits. Why do you poke holes in shortbread? The holes allow the moisture to escape during baking and more even heat distribution. This helps dry out and crisp up the cookies.

Why is shortbread considered to be bad for you? Shortbread is considered unhealthy because of the high butter content. How long do gingerbread houses last before eating them could make you sick?

What happens if you don't poke holes in shortbread? ›

Piercing the shortbread with a fork is not only for decoration, but it's meant for more even baking. Poking holes in the shortbread allows the heat to penetrate the cookie, hence more even baking. Notice I'm using powdered sugar here. You'll see lots of shortbread recipes using granulated sugar.

Sugar provides a fast source of energy. There are rarely any artificial additives. Cons: Shortbread is a weight watcher's nightmare because it is extremely high in saturated fat and calories.

It's simply, good traditional Scottish shortbread, nothing more. Chrystal's Shortbread is a small independent bakery based near Loch Lomond in Argyll, Scotland. It is run by husband and wife Chrystal and Rory Mackinlay with the assistance of a dedicated team of flour coated staff.

Americans are the outlier on how we use "biscuit"

To most of the rest of the English-speaking world, a biscuit is what Americans would refer to as either a cookie or a cracker. Biscuits can be sweet (shortbread) or savory. They're baked in the oven, and they're crisp, not chewy.

Buttery, crumbly, melt-in-the-mouth magnificence. We can only be talking about Scottish shortbread. The finger-licking favourite of foodies in and outside Scotland. So simple, yet outrageously flavoursome and addictive.

Scottish shortbread cookies are a delicious classic treat that has been enjoyed for centuries. With their buttery flavour and delicate crumbly texture, they are perfect for any occasion. Ranging from a simple afternoon snack to a fancy dinner party, they never fail to impress.

Beautiful Scottish shortbread 'petticoat tails' baked in a mold and sprinkled with sugar for a classic holiday cookie. Scottish shortbread is a classic Scottish biscuit made with 3 ingredients: butter, sugar, and flour! This simple molded shortbread is the perfect holiday gift.

The name "millionaire's shortbread" appears to have originated in Scotland. The "millionaire" prefix to millionaire's shortbread or millionaires slice implies a level of decadence and wealth to the sweet treat, that it is an upgrade from regular shortbread.