Tall Order for a Better Shortbread-Bien Cuit Bakery

I love shortbread and any excuse to bake a batch, I am all there.  So when Amanda Hesser posted an article on a favorite shortbread that graced their office meetings, all I could think was, do I have butter in the fridge?

Duh, of course.

The title of her article, The World’s Best Shortbread Is No Longer Sold-but We Got The Recipe.

Whaat? World’s Best?  This was added incentive to make a batch.  After all, I think I already have the perfect Shortbread.  An essay entitled “My Father’s Shortbread” found long ago in Cuisine magazine was both a tribute to the author’s Scottish father and his recipe for shortbread.  It has been the cornerstone of my annual holiday cookie platter for more years than I can remember.  Bouchon’s Shortbread is similar in texture and flavor to my favorite and is my runner up.  Can Amanda’s best these? I’ll let you be the judge.

Update 10/2023:  Yes, I love shortbread and two additional recipes I have tried that are very similar to this shortbread are Ted Lasso’s Biscuits with the Boss.  Both are delightful, Christina Tosi’s and Apple TV’s (the producer of Ted Lasso).

Let’s get busy…

The dough comes together easily.  The dry ingredients are blended briefly in a mixer and pieces of cold butter are added and mixed at low speed just until the dough comes together.  Do not overmix.

Press the dough evenly into a PARCHMENT lined 9×13 baking pan. The parchment should hang over the sides. Cover the dough and refrigerate overnight.  The parchment will make it easier to remove the cookies after baking.

The dough should be about 3/8 inch thick. Total baking time for my batch was 50 minutes, so start checking early and rotate pan at the halfway mark.  You want a nice golden brown.  Sprinkle the Demerara Sugar on the cookie as soon as the pan comes out of the oven.  It will adhere better.  At the 5 minute mark when I tried removing the shortbread from the pan, it cracked as the parchment gave way.  Next time I might try cutting the cookies in the pan, letting it cool and then removing them.  They’re a bit fragile so you may lose a couple while removing it from the pan.  Lucky you, you get to eat those pieces.

I will admit, they’re pretty good.  The biggest difference is the use of powdered sugar instead of granulated sugar.  Powdered sugar has cornstarch and lowers the protein content of the dough.  This creates a less dense, softer cookie.  It has the prerequisite buttery flavor, but the texture is different.  The sprinkling of sugar (use Demerara or Turbinado) on the top gives these cookies a nice crunch. I love that crisp resistance you get when you bite into a classic shortbread cookie, the sugar gives that crunch. Next time I’ll try European butter to up my butter game.  After rereading Ms. Hesser’s article, with the low baking temperature, I probably could have left the cookies in for a bit longer.  This might have added some crispness and flakiness without the shortbread getting too dark.

A steaming cup of coffee or tea and a few of these biscuits make for a lovely afternoon break.  Turning on Downton Abbey would make it perfect!  Update: 10/2023 If not Downton Abbey, Ted Lasso would be a great watch!