My husband has a thing for shortbread. Not just any shortbread though, his Nana’s shortbread. He’s been requesting that I make her shortbread cookies pretty much ever since we got together almost 3 years ago. Last week I finally broke down (ok, not so much broke down, but…) and made the cookies. They turned out really well and were really easy, so I was happy and he was happy.
“Oh-my-gosh-I-have-people-coming-and-nothing-in-my-fridge!” This is one of those recipes. It’s 4 ingredients…and this is stuff you should definitely have in your fridge/pantry. Cornstarch, flour, confectioner’s sugar, and butter. If you don’t, go out and get them now so that you’ll have cookies the next time you need them. Plus…that’s stuff you should have in your fridge and pantry anyway.
The secret to shortbread is to not mix it too much when you add the butter to the flour, cornstarch and confectioner’s sugar. If you mix it too much the shortbread will get tough and that’s just not good eats. Make sure your butter is soft enough to work it in, and work it just until it turns into a dough. You might try chilling the dough before you bake it, although I didn’t do that this time and they still turned out well.
Short, sweet, and easy – a great recipe when you need it. As always, let me know if you try it out and how it goes. Bake on!
