Betty's Chai Shortbread

                               

It's been fun to have a new international market open here in Aberdeen, and I've been experimenting with spices.  Bought some whole chai spices and ground them in my coffee mill.  After several tries, I can now make perfect  "from scratch" chai tea, delicious both hot and cold.  

So why not chai shortbread? The recipe is simply adding the contents of one bag of green tea and 3/4 teaspoon ground chai spice to Betty's Basic Shortbread, but below is the recipe in full.  I made individual cookies, using a size 70 round scoop- they came out wonderfully baked after 14 minutes at 325 degrees F.

Betty's Chai Shortbread

Oven temp: 325 degrees F

Line cookie sheets with parchment paper.

Blend together in food processor:

1/3 cup powdered sugar

1/4 cup white rice flour

3/4 cup Ultragrain flour

(1/4 tsp salt if using unsalted butter)

scant 1/2 tsp ground chai spices

Contents of one bag tea, green or black

Process in just until blended:

1/2 cup butter

Form dough into 1-inch balls. Dip balls in sugar and flatten them with a cookie stamp or glass. Place balls on cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Refrigerate for at least 15 minutes.

Bake for shortbread cookies for 14 minutes. Let cool for 5 minutes on cookie sheet before putting on wire rack to cool completely. Recipe makes approximately 2 dozen shortbread cookies.

I am happily in shortbread production mode:

Baking shortbread for the opening of my daughter in law, Candace Steiger Clay's, exhibition, Uninhabited, this Thursday at the Goss Opera House in Watertown, SD.  We are so very proud of Candace!

Betty's Lavender Vanilla Shortbread

Saturday was Shortbread Day, and it was wonderful to have the first day of a long holiday weekend to bake shortbread. I've been wanting to bake lavender shortbread for some time, and the project required a bit of planning ahead.

First, I ordered organic culinary lavender from Hood River Lavender.

Next, a week in advance, I made lavendar sugar by mixing one tablespoon lavendar with approximately 1 cup sugar. I put it in a glass jar and shook it every day or so.

On baking day, to prepare for rolling balls of dough in it, I strained the lavender sugar.

I used Betty's Basic Shortbread Recipe for the Lavender Vanilla Shortbread, adding 1/2 tablespoon of lavender and 3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract as follows:

Betty's Lavender Vanilla Shortbread

Oven temp: 350 degrees F

Line cookie sheets with parchment paper.

Blend together in food processor:

1/3 cup powdered sugar

1/4 cup white rice flour

3/4 cup Ultragrain flour

(1/4 tsp salt if using unsalted butter)

Process in just until blended:

1/2 cup butter

3/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Empty dough out onto a sheet of waxed paper. Sprinkle 1/2 tablespoon of dried organic lavender over the mixture, and blend it in by hand.

Form dough into 1-inch balls. Roll balls in lavender sugar and flatten them with a cookie stamp or glass. Place balls on cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Refrigerate for at least 15 minutes.

Bake for shortbread cookies for 12 minutes. Let cool for 5 minutes on cookie sheet before putting on wire rack to cool completely. Recipe makes approximately 4 dozen shortbread cookies.

These are lovely, elegant shortbread cookies: delicious, with just enough taste of lavender.

Betty's Honey Spelt Shortbread

Yesterday was Shortbread Day! It felt so good to be back baking shortbread after several busy months in my "real job" as an instructional designer.

Joy.

I've been experimenting with spelt flour this summer, using it in breads and pizza crust. Besides higher protein and lower gluten content than wheat flour, it has a wonderful nutty texture and flavor. I use Bob's Red Mill spelt flour, available in our local grocery:

To complement the spelt flour, I decided to use locally-grown honey as part of the sweetening in the shortbread:

First time around, I made individual shortbread cookies, forming the dough into balls, then flattening them with the bottom of a glass. One batch, based on one stick of butter, nicely made 2 dozen cookies:

The cookies had a delicious flavor, sweet and subtly nutty, but the ingredient proportions were a bit off.

More dry ingredients were needed to balance the honey and give the cookies a more traditional shortbread texture.

Try, try again.

This time, perfection! Oh, so delicious, and a wonderful crumb and texture:

Wouldn't you like to try some? Here's the recipe:

Betty's Honey Spelt Shortbread

Pan: 8-inch cast iron skillet

Oven temperature: 300 degrees F

Blend in food processor:

1 c. spelt flour

1/3 c .white rice flour

3 TB powdered sugar

1/2 tsp. salt

Process in until mixture forms a ball:

1/2 c. unsalted butter

3 TB honey

Pour ingredients onto a sheet of wax paper and knead into a flat disc. Press into an 8-inch cast iron skillet. Prick top with toothpick and press fork around edges.

Bake on middle oven rack for 40-42 minutes. Immediately after removing shortbread from oven, cut into 12 wedges. Let cool in pan.

Enjoy!

Irish Cream Shortbread: First Try

With St. Patrick's Day approaching, I thought it would be fun to make an Irish shortbread.

There are lot of recipes for homemade Irish Cream liquor on the Net- these were my inspiration. Found a bottle of Irish whiskey in the cupboard, and off I went!



Here' the recipe I followed:

Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Process dry ingredients in the food processor:
1/4 cup powdered sugar
3/4 cup Ultragrain flour
1/4 cup white rice flour
1 TBSP dry milk powder
1 TBSP cocoa

Add the following, and process until the dough begins to form a ball:
1/2 cup butter (salted, or add 1/4 tsp. salt)
1 T Irish whiskey
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp almond extract

Put dough into an 8-inch cast iron skillet. Flatten, and prick the top several times with a fork or toothpick. Bake for 43 minutes. Remove from oven, set skillet, and cut shortbread into 12 wedges. Let cool in skillet.

Once cooled, remove shortbread wedges from pan. Brush the wedges with glaze of butter, powdered sugar glaze and just a touch of Irish whiskey.


This shortbread definitely tastes like Irish cream, but is a bit dry. I'm going to try it again with less powdered milk and a bit of instant coffee. I think I'll use a milder cocoa than the Dutch process, as well. Until then, this recipe is not bad, but not a keeper.

Betty's Pina Colada Shortbread

I hadn't planned on continuing the shortbread blog past 2010. This week I made a list of shortbread flavors I'd like to try. The list was long, so here we go.

When I took over samples to a friend yesterday (Shortbread Day), she asked me, "Why pina colada shortbread?".

Well, when you look outside and see this:



and you wish you were seeing this:



you can at least make shortbread like what you'd like to be sipping on a beach right now.

The pina colada shortbread is fabulous! Very rich and flavorful.


Here's how to make it:

1. The night before, soak 1/4 cup dried pineapple in your favorite rum. The next morning strain the pineapple, reserving the rum.

2. Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Process the dry ingredients in the food processor:
1/3 cup powdered sugar
3/4 cup Ultragrain flour
1/4 cup white rice flour
1/2 cup toasted coconut

3. Add the following to the food processor, and process until the dough begins to form a ball:
1/2 cup butter (salted, or add 1/4 tsp. salt)
the drained pineapple

4. Put dough into an 8-inch cast iron skillet. Flatten, and prick the top several times with a fork or toothpick.

5. Bake for 43 minutes. Remove from oven, set skillet, and cut shortbread into 12 wedges. Let cool in skillet.

6. Once cooled, remove shortbread wedges from pan. Make a rum glaze with:
1 tsp. butter, melted
1 Tbsp reserved rum
powdered sugar until easily spreadable.

7. Brush shortbread wedges with rum glaze and sprinkle with dried coconut. Enjoy!

2010 Shortbread Culmination

Hosting our son's wedding rehearsal dinner on 12.31.2010 was the perfect opportunity to share all I'd learned about shortbread baking during the year.

I made shortbread, lots of shortbread! For this large a quantity, I made quadruple batches and rolled out the dough in large sheet pans. After chilling the dough for about 30 minutes, I cut it into 1.5- by 2-inch rectangles to put on cookie sheets and bake.


Each guest would get a sample of 4 of my most successful shortbread recipes: traditional butter, almond, maple walnut, and Earl Grey.


My kitchen began to look like a factory!



It was fun to put everything together in cello bags with my little plaid tags.


I received lots of compliments on the shortbread and it felt wonderful to share something homemade with love at the special event.

Shortbreads I Have Known: McTavish Shortbread

When I sent out requests to shortbread companies for samples to include in the "Shortbreads I Known", Denise Pratt of McTavish Shortbread responded with a wonderful assortment of goodies. I invited a few friends over to taste and enjoy.

McTavish cookies attractively packaged, with distinguishing designs for each flavor:


Cookies are also available in bulk. That's how we received the delicious traditional butter shortbread.


These generously sized, 3.25-inch cookies remind you of treats fresh from grandmother's oven! The pure butter flavor is balanced with a combination of wheat and barley flours, for a hearty texture and delicious flavor. Sugar sprinkles on top add extra sweetness and another home-baked touch.

McTavish Shortbread Minis are lovely enough for the most formal tea:


These have the same special wheat and barley flour texture as the traditional McTavish cookies, and are packed with flavor. It was difficult to choose one favorite, but Hazelnut and Lemon-Lavender were at the top of our tasters' list. Both the Lemon and Lemon-Lavender shortbread had just the right amount of lemon oil, providing a refreshing taste, but never overpowering the butter.

As if the butter and sugar in McTavish cookies don't provide enough richness, chocolate-dipped shortbread is also available:


The dark chocolate coating is thick and rich. This charming Scotty cookie shape is a reminder of the authenticity of the delicious McTavish family recipe.

No time to bake for the holidays? Treat your family and friends to a taste of Scottish delight with McTavish Shortbread.