Name: Scottish Shortbread- 3 ways
Ingredients: 1 1/2 c pastry flour OR 1 1/4c all purpose flour; 1/4 c powdered sugar; 1 stick room temp salted butter OR unsalted butter plus 1/4tsp salt; flavor of choice- extracts, sliced almonds, zests, caraway seeds, poppy seeds, herbs, spices... I would start with 1/2tsp of extract and 1/2 tsp of seeds or spices and increase from there.; 1 1/2 c pastry flour OR 1 1/4c all purpose flour; 1/4 c white sugar; 1 stick room temp salted butter OR unsalted butter plus 1/4tsp salt; flavor of choice- extracts, sliced almonds, zests, caraway seeds, poppy seeds, herbs, spices... I would start with 1/2tsp of extract and 1/2 tsp of seeds or spices and increase from there.; 1 1/2 c pastry flour or 1 1/4c all purpose flour; 1/4c plus 2T powdered sugar; 1 stick room temp salted butter or unsalted plus 1/4tsp salt; ~1/4c T milk or cream- add milk until it becomes a thick batter that can be piped.; flavor of choice- extracts, sliced almonds, zests, caraway seeds, poppy seeds, herbs, spices... I would start with 1/2tsp of extract and 1/2 tsp of seeds or spices and increase from there.

Scottish Shortbread- 3 ways

Ingredients

Version #1- powdered sugar

1 1/2 c pastry flour OR 1 1/4c all purpose flour
1/4 c powdered sugar
1 stick room temp salted butter OR unsalted butter plus 1/4tsp salt
flavor of choice- extracts, sliced almonds, zests, caraway seeds, poppy seeds, herbs, spices… I would start with 1/2tsp of extract and 1/2 tsp of seeds or spices and increase from there.

Version #2- white sugar

1 1/2 c pastry flour OR 1 1/4c all purpose flour
1/4 c white sugar
1 stick room temp salted butter OR unsalted butter plus 1/4tsp salt
flavor of choice- extracts, sliced almonds, zests, caraway seeds, poppy seeds, herbs, spices… I would start with 1/2tsp of extract and 1/2 tsp of seeds or spices and increase from there.

Version #3- piped cookies

1 1/2 c pastry flour or 1 1/4c all purpose flour
1/4c plus 2T powdered sugar
1 stick room temp salted butter or unsalted plus 1/4tsp salt
~1/4c T milk or cream- add milk until it becomes a thick batter that can be piped.
flavor of choice- extracts, sliced almonds, zests, caraway seeds, poppy seeds, herbs, spices… I would start with 1/2tsp of extract and 1/2 tsp of seeds or spices and increase from there.

Instructions

The white sugar version has a richer flavor, the powdered sugar one crumbles in your mouth more, the piped version is a bit in the middle of both. I am posting all 3 because there was a heated discussion by my taste testers as they all felt that a different one was the best. I redid the recipes to make them small batches so that you can try all 3!

Follow these initial steps for all 3 versions

Place the butter in a medium size bowl. Optional: sift first. Add in flour, sugar and salt (if using unsalted butter) and any flavors. Using your hands or wooden spoon- but i really recommend hands- work butter into the flour/sugar, breaking it into small pieces. Initially the dough may seem too dry, but continue to work it together with your hands and it will come together into a nice soft ball of dough. If making the piped version, mix in the cream.

Oven at 350- bake time 10-25 minutes – all depends on thickness of cookies. You DO NOT want them to be browned on top, a slight golden brown on the bottom is fine.

Shaping version 1 and 2

You can form dough into a rectangle to cut into shortbread sticks/fingers. Or into a disk and cut into wedges to make petticoat tail cookies ( if you want to be very traditional, use a small circular cutter and cut a circle in the middle of the disk and then cut out wedges. You can also use a round cutter and create round shorbread cookies/biscuits.
Optional: chill in freezer for 5-7 min before baking

Shaping version 3

Fit a large piping tip into a sturdy piping bag. Place dough in the bag and pipe circular decorative cookies- no right or wrong way- have fun with it!