Scotch Shortbread I Food

TRADITIONAL SCOTTISH SHORTBREAD

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter a 8x8 or 9x9 inch square baking pan. You can also use a round cake can and cut the shortbread into triangles.
• Place the caster sugar, flour, salt and butter in a food processor and pulse until it's combined and looks like coarse breadcrumbs but is soft and pliable and comes together in a dough when you press it together between your fingers. If it's too dry and crumbly it needs to be pulsed a bit longer. (If using any add-ins, stir them in at this point.)Pour the mixture into the greased baking pan. Use your fingers and hands to firmly press down the mixture. Note: If the mixture is too dry to work with, including pricking with a fork (see below), then it was not pulsed long enough in the food processor. Optional: Prick the shortbread with the tines of a fork, creating rows. Some people also like run a knife between each row of fork tines to make cutting the shortbread easier after it's baked. You can also prick the shortbread with a fork immediately after it is done baking while it is still warm; the holes will be more pronounced this way as they have a tendency to close during baking.
• Place the shortbread on the middle rack and bake for 30-35 minutes or until light golden and firm. Let cool. Cut and serve.Store the shortbread in an airtight container for up to several weeks. Its flavor and texture improves over time.

SCOTTISH SHORTBREAD II

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C).
• Blend all ingredients well. Dough will be stiff.
• Press into a 9 x 9 inch buttered dish. Prick top with a fork.
• Bake until pale golden brown on the edges. Cool and cut into squares.

SCOTCH SHORTBREAD

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 300 degrees F (150 degrees C).
• Mix flour, butter, and 1/2 cup sugar together in a bowl using your hands until dough is well combined. Press dough into an ungreased 11 1/2x 7 1/2-inch pan or jelly roll pan. Sprinkle with 1 tablespoon sugar.
• Bake in the preheated oven until edges are light brown, 20 to 30 minutes. Cut shortbread into squares in the pan while still warm. Cool completely before removing squares from pan.

SCOTTISH SHORTBREAD COOKIES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325°. In a large bowl, combine flour and sugar. Cut in butter until mixture resembles fine crumbs. Knead dough until smooth, about 6-10 times. Pat dough into an ungreased 15x10x1-in. baking pan. Pierce with a fork. , Bake until lightly browned, 25-30 minutes. Cut into squares while warm. Cool on a wire rack.

SCOTTISH SHORTBREAD

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325°. Cream butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy, 5-7 minutes. Add 3-3/4 cups flour; mix well. Turn dough onto a floured surface; knead for 5 minutes, adding enough remaining flour to form a soft dough. , Roll to 1/2-in. thickness. Cut into 3x1-in. strips. Place 1 in. apart on ungreased baking sheets. Prick with fork. Bake until cookies are lightly browned, 20-25 minutes. Cool.

SCOTTISH SHORTBREAD

Steps:

• Set oven rack to middle position.
• Preheat oven to 275°F.
• Have two ungreased 8-inch cake pans ready.
• Food Processor Method.
• Cut the butter into 1-inch cubes, wrap it, and refrigerate.
• Process the sugars for 1 minute or so, until the sugar is very fine.
• Add the butter and pulse until the sugar disappears.
• Add the flour and pulse until there are a lot of moist, crumbly little pieces and no dry flour particles remain.
• Dump the mixture into a plastic bag and press it together.
• Remove the dough from the plastic bag and knead it lightly until it holds together.
• Electric Mixer or by Hand.
• Use superfine granulated sugar for the best texture and be sure to soften the butter.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together the sugars.
• In a large bowl, cream the butter with the sugars until light and fluffy.
• With your fingers or with the electric mixer, mix in the flour until the mixture holds together.
• If using the mixer, add the flour in 2 parts.
• For Both Methods.
• Divide the dough into 2 equal parts.
• Pat each half into an ungreased 8-inch round cake pan.
• Use the tines of a fork to press 3/4-inch lines radiating like rays of sun all around the perimeter of the dough.
• Prick the rest of the dough all over with the tines of the fork.
• (this keeps the shortbread even and creates the traditional design).
• Bake for 60-70 minutes or until pale golden (do not brown).
• For even baking, rotate the pans from top to bottom and front to back halfway through the baking period.
• Cool in the pans, on a wire rack, for 10 minutes.
• Invert the shortbread onto flat cookie sheet and slide it onto a cutting board.
• While still warm, use a long sharp knife to cut each 8-inch round of shortbread into 8 pie-shaped wedges.
• Transfer the wedges to wire racks to cool completely.

SCOTTISH SHORTBREAD

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Place butter in mixer and beat with paddle until soft and light. Beat in sugar in a stream and continue beating 5 to 10 minutes until the mixture is very light and whitened. Stir in the flour by hand until it absorbed, no more or the dough will toughen.
• Scrape the dough onto a floured surface and flour the dough with pinches of flour. Press the dough out with your hands, then roll over once or twice very gently with a rolling pin until the dough is about 1/2-inch thick. Cut the dough with floured cutters and transfer the cut pieces to a paper lined pan.
• Bake the shortbread for about 15 minutes until it is very lightly colored. Cool the shortbread on a rack.
• To use a shortbread mold to shape, press the mold into the floured dough and cut around it. Transfer the cut and molded dough to a paper lined pan and chill about 1 hour until firm. Bake as above.

KITTENCAL'S SCOTCH SHORTBREAD BARS

Steps:

• Set oven to 350 degrees F.
• Prepare an ungreased 11 x 7-inch baking pan.
• In a mixing bowl cream butter and sugar well.
• Combine flour, baking powder and salt; gradually add to creamed mixture.
• Spread into a prepared ungreased baking pan.
• Prick well several times with a fork.
• Bake for 20-22 minutes, or until the edges just begin to brown.
• Remove from oven the dust with more icing sugar.
• Cool on wire rack.
• Cut into bars.

ROYAL SCOTCH SHORTBREAD

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Sift the flour, sugar and salt together. Add the butter and use your hands or a pastry cutter to combine until the mixture is crumbly. Work into a ball and knead briefly. Pat into a 1/4-inch sheet on an ungreased cookie sheet. Cut the dough into 2-inch diamonds.
• Bake for 45 minutes. Remove from the oven. Immediately recut the cookies. Separate carefully and cool on a rack. Cookies can be frozen in an airtight container, with wax paper between each layer for up to 6 months. Defrost 30 minutes before serving.