Simple shortbread serves up luxurious taste, texture
By Marcia Poole | Posted: Wednesday, January 07, 2009
Butter Shortbread Petticoat Tails take an appealing wedge shape and give it a fluted flourish.
Talk about stiff competition. Hundreds of new food products vie for consumer attention each year. Only a small number manage to grab hold and find a lasting place in the supermarket.
On the main dish end, Bertolli made a splash in 2008 with a line of microwave-ready pouches of "premium" pasta sauces.
None of that tell-tale "canned" aftertaste; the sauces are effortless -- hot and ready in 90 seconds to enjoy over pasta, rice or any other foundation you can dream up. The Bertolli product rates two thumbs up as one of the best food newcomers of the year.
In the sweet-but-not-too-sweet category of the new product spectrum is another winner: Miniature Shortbread Rounds by the Walkers Shortbread bakery. If you don't know the name, you probably know the package: tartan plaid and proudly Scot.
Subtle shortbread cookies are a favorite at the holidays, but the new miniature version gives the classic an extra year-round spin. It reminds us that even as we contemplate cutting back on calories, we can still enjoy an occasional treat but with an eye to portion size. The buttery texture and taste make the small serving truly a treat and maybe just enough to satisfy.
I've always loved the taste and texture of shortbread - simple yet somehow luxurious. Simplicity seems just right this time of year as we move beyond holiday excess and brace for more weeks of winter.
Basic shortbread has only a few main ingredients: flour; butter; and sugar. The secret to delicious results? Quality ingredients. The softest of cake flours is a must for some bakers. Premium butter is too.
Lemon peel figures in as one of many variations that can add a little something extra. Queen Victoria favored shortbread seasoned with salt, according to food historian Alan Davidson. Other historic versions enriched the basic dough with egg yolk and a bit of cream. Some called for a dash of ground coriander or caraway seeds.
I recently came across a recipe for Butter Shortbread Petticoat Tails from the Irish Dairy Board. Petticoat tails? I went to Davidson for an explanation. The late historian compiled many food and wine writing honors during his life, including the Erasmus Prize for contributions to European culture and society. In his Oxford Companion to Food, he gives us insight into "petticoat tails."
The treat is baked in a round pan, but a circle is cut out of the center of the dough. The cut-out rounds off the point of each wedge serving, creating the desired petticoat shape. The recipe that follows uses a tart pan, but it retains the point for perhaps an updated version of shortbread petticoat tails.
Petticoats were fashionable when women were into full skirts, which has been most of our fashion history. Worn underneath, the undergarment gave skirts a soft, stand-out look. Petticoats were still commonplace as recently as the '50s and early '60s. I have pictures to prove it.
Shape can be such a fun part of baking. Many of us have whimsical pans and cookie-cutters that get at least a yearly work-out or two. The holidays may be over, but Valentine's Day is approaching as another occasion for shaping up treats for family, friends and sweethearts. Meanwhile enjoy the petticoat tails.
Butter Shortbread Petticoat Tails
1.25 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
One-half cup cornstarch
One-quarter teaspoon salt
One-half cup granulated sugar
8 ounces (1 cup) cold Kerrygold unsalted butter, cut into three-quarter inch pieces*
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Heat the oven to 300 degrees F. Have ready a nine-inch tart pan with a removable bottom. Sift the flour, cornstarch and salt into the large bowl of an electric mixer. Add the sugar and mix on low speed just to blend the ingredients, 15 seconds.
With the mixer running add the butter pieces and continue mixing until crumbs form and there is no loose flour, about two minutes. Add the vanilla, mixing until large clumps form that pull away from the side of the bowl, about 15 seconds.
Transfer the dough to the tart pan. Use the palm of your hand to press the dough evenly into the pan. Use a thin metal spatula to smooth the top. The dough will be one-half inch thick. Use a fork to prick the dough at two-inch intervals. Use a small sharp knife to mark 12 even, wedge-shaped cookies.
Bake the cookies until the top is light golden, about one hour. Immediately use a small sharp knife to cut completely through the marked wedges. Cool the shortbread thoroughly in the pan. Remove the sides of the pan and separate the cookies. The cookies can be stored in a tightly covered container for up to one week. Makes 12 large cookies. Source: Irish Dairy Board.
* If using Kerrygold salted butter, reduce the salt to one-eighth teaspoon.
Variations: This butter shortbread lends itself to many variations:
* Sprinkle one to two tablespoons of sugar or colored sugar over the top of the dough before baking.
* Dust confectioner's sugar over the cooled cookies.
* Press pecan halves into the dough in the pan to form a nut border before baking.
* Make a thin glaze from confectioner's sugar and cream and drizzle it over the cooled shortbread.
* Serve wedges of this shortbread topped with whipped cream and fresh berries.
On the main dish end, Bertolli made a splash in 2008 with a line of microwave-ready pouches of "premium" pasta sauces.
None of that tell-tale "canned" aftertaste; the sauces are effortless -- hot and ready in 90 seconds to enjoy over pasta, rice or any other foundation you can dream up. The Bertolli product rates two thumbs up as one of the best food newcomers of the year.
In the sweet-but-not-too-sweet category of the new product spectrum is another winner: Miniature Shortbread Rounds by the Walkers Shortbread bakery. If you don't know the name, you probably know the package: tartan plaid and proudly Scot.
Subtle shortbread cookies are a favorite at the holidays, but the new miniature version gives the classic an extra year-round spin. It reminds us that even as we contemplate cutting back on calories, we can still enjoy an occasional treat but with an eye to portion size. The buttery texture and taste make the small serving truly a treat and maybe just enough to satisfy.
I've always loved the taste and texture of shortbread - simple yet somehow luxurious. Simplicity seems just right this time of year as we move beyond holiday excess and brace for more weeks of winter.
Basic shortbread has only a few main ingredients: flour; butter; and sugar. The secret to delicious results? Quality ingredients. The softest of cake flours is a must for some bakers. Premium butter is too.
Lemon peel figures in as one of many variations that can add a little something extra. Queen Victoria favored shortbread seasoned with salt, according to food historian Alan Davidson. Other historic versions enriched the basic dough with egg yolk and a bit of cream. Some called for a dash of ground coriander or caraway seeds.
I recently came across a recipe for Butter Shortbread Petticoat Tails from the Irish Dairy Board. Petticoat tails? I went to Davidson for an explanation. The late historian compiled many food and wine writing honors during his life, including the Erasmus Prize for contributions to European culture and society. In his Oxford Companion to Food, he gives us insight into "petticoat tails."
The treat is baked in a round pan, but a circle is cut out of the center of the dough. The cut-out rounds off the point of each wedge serving, creating the desired petticoat shape. The recipe that follows uses a tart pan, but it retains the point for perhaps an updated version of shortbread petticoat tails.
Petticoats were fashionable when women were into full skirts, which has been most of our fashion history. Worn underneath, the undergarment gave skirts a soft, stand-out look. Petticoats were still commonplace as recently as the '50s and early '60s. I have pictures to prove it.
Shape can be such a fun part of baking. Many of us have whimsical pans and cookie-cutters that get at least a yearly work-out or two. The holidays may be over, but Valentine's Day is approaching as another occasion for shaping up treats for family, friends and sweethearts. Meanwhile enjoy the petticoat tails.
Butter Shortbread Petticoat Tails
1.25 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
One-half cup cornstarch
One-quarter teaspoon salt
One-half cup granulated sugar
8 ounces (1 cup) cold Kerrygold unsalted butter, cut into three-quarter inch pieces*
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Heat the oven to 300 degrees F. Have ready a nine-inch tart pan with a removable bottom. Sift the flour, cornstarch and salt into the large bowl of an electric mixer. Add the sugar and mix on low speed just to blend the ingredients, 15 seconds.
With the mixer running add the butter pieces and continue mixing until crumbs form and there is no loose flour, about two minutes. Add the vanilla, mixing until large clumps form that pull away from the side of the bowl, about 15 seconds.
Transfer the dough to the tart pan. Use the palm of your hand to press the dough evenly into the pan. Use a thin metal spatula to smooth the top. The dough will be one-half inch thick. Use a fork to prick the dough at two-inch intervals. Use a small sharp knife to mark 12 even, wedge-shaped cookies.
Bake the cookies until the top is light golden, about one hour. Immediately use a small sharp knife to cut completely through the marked wedges. Cool the shortbread thoroughly in the pan. Remove the sides of the pan and separate the cookies. The cookies can be stored in a tightly covered container for up to one week. Makes 12 large cookies. Source: Irish Dairy Board.
* If using Kerrygold salted butter, reduce the salt to one-eighth teaspoon.
Variations: This butter shortbread lends itself to many variations:
* Sprinkle one to two tablespoons of sugar or colored sugar over the top of the dough before baking.
* Dust confectioner's sugar over the cooled cookies.
* Press pecan halves into the dough in the pan to form a nut border before baking.
* Make a thin glaze from confectioner's sugar and cream and drizzle it over the cooled shortbread.
* Serve wedges of this shortbread topped with whipped cream and fresh berries.
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