Shortbread Stars Food

SHORTBREAD COOKIES

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, mix together the butter and 1 cup of sugar until they are just combined. Add the vanilla. In a medium bowl, sift together the flour and salt, then add them to the butter-and-sugar mixture. Mix on low speed until the dough starts to come together. Dump onto a surface dusted with flour and shape into a flat disk. Wrap in plastic and chill for 30 minutes.
• Roll the dough 1/2-inch thick and cut with a 3 by 1-inch finger-shaped cutter. Place the cookies on an ungreased baking sheet and sprinkle with sugar. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until the edges begin to brown. Allow to cool to room temperature.
• When the cookies are cool, place them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Put 3 ounces of the chocolate in a glass bowl and microwave on high power for 30 seconds. (Don't trust your microwave timer; time it with your watch.) Stir with a wooden spoon. Continue to heat and stir in 30-second increments until the chocolate is just melted. Add the remaining chocolate and allow it to sit at room temperature, stirring often, until it's completely smooth. Stir vigorously until the chocolate is smooth and slightly cooled; stirring makes it glossier.
• Drizzle 1/2 of each cookie with just enough chocolate to coat it.

CRANBERRY SHORTBREAD STARS

Steps:

• In a large bowl, beat butter, confectioners' sugar and salt until blended. Beat in vanilla. Gradually beat in flour. Stir in cranberries., Shape dough into a disk; wrap in plastic. Refrigerate 30 minutes or until firm enough to roll., Preheat oven to 325°. On a lightly floured surface, roll dough to 1/4-in. thickness. Cut with a floured 2-in. star-shaped cookie cutter. Place 1 in. apart on greased baking sheets., Bake 12-15 minutes or until edges are golden brown. Remove from pans to wire racks to cool.

COOKIES 'N CREAM SHORTBREAD STARS

Steps:

• Line a 13-by-9-inch sheet pan with parchment paper.
• Combine the butter and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Cream at low speed until light and fluffy, 3 to 4 minutes. Stop and scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add the vanilla and mix until incorporated.
• Add the 2 1/4 cups flour. Mix at low speed just until it's incorporated. Stop and scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add the cookie pieces and mix at low until they are evenly distributed throughout the dough.
• Press the dough into the prepared 13-by-9-inch sheet pan. Get it as smooth as possible and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
• Line 2 half sheet pans (18-by-13-inch each) with parchment paper.
• Using a 3-inch star-shape cookie cutter, cut out stars from the chilled dough, dipping the cookie cutter in the 3 tablespoons flour in between cuts. Place the stars on each prepared half sheet pan then refrigerate.
• Meanwhile, position racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven and preheat to 325 degrees F.
• Gently gather the dough scraps and press them back into the 13-by-9 inch sheet pan-however, only press into half of the pan. Then, refrigerate for 30 minutes or wrap with plastic and save for another time, for up to 5 days. Repeat the cutting with the cookie cutter and transfer the stars to the prepared sheet pans.
• Bake the cookies until they are lightly golden around the edges, rotating the sheet pans halfway through baking, 27 to 29 minutes.
• Allow the cookies to cool completely on the sheet pan.
• Combine the white chocolate chips with the vegetable oil in a small microwave-safe bowl. Microwave for 10 seconds at a time until the chips are melted, stirring after each interval. Transfer to a piping bag. Cut a small hole at the tip then pipe the white chocolate onto each cooled cookie.
• Before the white chocolate sets, decorate each cookie with the patriotic sprinkles. Allow the white chocolate to set completely before serving.

CLASSIC SHORTBREAD

Steps:

• Position an oven rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 325 degrees F. Butter a 9-by-12-1/2-inch jelly roll pan and line it with parchment, then butter the paper.
• Whisk together the flour, cornstarch and salt in a bowl. Beat the butter and sugar with an electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy, 5 to 7 minutes. Slowly add the flour mixture and beat on low until the dough is just combined; do not overwork.
• Transfer the dough to the prepared pan, spreading it out as evenly as possible with a spatula. Cover with plastic wrap, then use your hands to press and flatten the dough into a smooth even layer. Remove the plastic and cut the dough with a sharp knife into approximately 1-by-3-inch bars. Use a fork to prick a decorative pattern into the tops.
• Bake, rotating the pan from front to back halfway through, until golden, 60 to 70 minutes. Let stand for 5 minutes in the pan, then re-cut the bars along the previous cuts. Carefully lift the bars off the parchment with a small spatula and transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely. Store the cookies in an airtight container for up to 5 days.

SHORTBREAD STARS

Steps:

• Cream butter 3-5 min until fluffy.
• add sugar and beat 2 min.
• add vanilla.
• add flour and salt and combine on low speed.
• chill 60 min.
• roll out to 1/4 " thickness and cut into stars.
• bake at 325 for 18-20 min.
• once cooled, sprinkle with powdered sugar.

SHORTBREAD RECIPE

Steps:

• Place the butter and 140g sugar in a food processor and whizz until smooth.
• Tip in both the flours and a pinch of salt, then whizz until mixture comes together.
• Using your hands, roughly spread the mixture out in a 20 x 30 x 4cm baking tray. Cover with cling film and smooth over until there are no wrinkles. Place in the fridge, uncooked, for at least 30 mins and up to 2 days.
• Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Remove cling film, then lightly mark the shortbread all over with a fork.
• Sprinkle with the remaining sugar, then bake for 20-25 mins.
• Leave to cool in the tin, then cut into 24 thin slices. Shortbread will keep in an airtight container for up to 1 week.

SHORTBREAD BISCUITS

Steps:

• Heat the oven 170C/150C fan/gas 3. Put the flour, butter and sugar into a mixing bowl. Use your hands to combine the ingredients until the mixture looks like breadcrumbs, then squeeze until it comes together as a dough.
• On a lightly floured surface, use a rolling pin to roll out the dough to ½ cm thick. Cut the dough into fingers and place on a lined baking tray. Use a fork to create imprints, then sprinkle with the remaining caster sugar.
• Chill the dough in the fridge for 20 mins, then bake for 15-20 mins until golden brown. Remove the shortbread fingers from the oven and leave to cool on the tray for 10 mins.

SUPER-EASY SHORTBREAD (3 INGREDIENTS)

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 300°.
• Cream butter and sugar together.
• Add flour and mix till texture is like clay.
• Press dough into ungreased 9 x 13 inch pan, prick all over with a fork, and sprinkle with sugar (tilt pan to cover the top evenly, then shake excess sugar back into the sugar canister).
• Bake for about 40-45 minutes (till very lightly browned--just golden around the edges).
• Let stand for 5 minutes, then cut into 24 squares while warm.
• Leave in pan to cool thoroughly. (Shortbread will not be crisp until cool.).
• Less easy method: Chill dough. Roll into 1-inch balls, then press balls to about 1/4-inch thickness on ungreased cookie sheets with the bottom of a glass dipped in sugar (sometimes you can find a glass with a pretty design on the bottom, like a star). Bake at 300° for about 20-25 minutes (until edges are very lightly browned).
• Least easy method: Chill dough. Roll out to about 1/4-inch thickness, sprinkle with sugar, then cut with cookie cutters. Bake on ungreased cookie sheets at 300° for about 20-25 minutes (until edges are very lightly browned).
• Variation: Add 2 tablespoons dried lavender to the creamed butter and sugar before adding flour. It may sound strange, but the flavor is subtle and elegant. Food-grade lavender is usually available in herb bins at health food stores, and I recently found it at a great price from Atlantic Spice online (their Lavender #1).
• Variation: After cutting shortbread into squares (it will still be warm), scatter 1 cup of chocolate chips over the top, let the chocolate soften completely, then spread as a thin layer and let cool completely before removing from pan. (No need to sprinkle shortbread with sugar before baking if you plan to do this.).
• Variation: Stir 1 cup chocolate chips or butterscotch chips into the dough before pressing into pan. You can also try melting the butterscotch over the top, as above. In England, you'll find "caramel shortbread," which has a layer of caramel and a layer of chocolate on top of the shortbread. It's wonderful (of course!). I've tried various ways of doing this and various kinds of caramel, but it's been a while and I don't remember what works best. It can be tricky not to make a mess!