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Shortbread…it’s pretty hard to resist that baked buttery goodness. We were recently over at my Ma-ma’s (Grandma on my Dad’s side) for dinner and she pulled out her annual tin of perfectly baked shortbread. It just felt like the perfect intro to the holidays and must have planted a seed because the following weekend I found myself in the kitchen rolling out that delicious dough.
I’ve never been much of a baker. The add as you go, more care-free approach to cooking versus baking always appealed to me more. But recently I have really been getting into it! I don’t know if it’s the season, my savory tooth that seems to be trading itself in for a sweet tooth, or the creative process of baking with the decorating, but I have really been enjoying the process!
My Granny (on my Mom’s side) recently moved and I wanted to bring her something she could share with her new neighbors and visitors stopping by and shortbread seemed like the perfect seasonal treat!
As per usual, once I get in the kitchen, I got to thinking about how I could make this recipe a tad more nutritious. Don’t worry! I’m know when not to ruin a good thing, so today I’m sharing two shortbread recipes.
Traditional and a gluten-free grain free version. A lot of recipe testing went on with this one trying out different flours, fats and sugars. The version with coconut flour was a total flop, it pretty much tasted like dust in your mouth. Haha so that one didn’t make the cut. Almond flour seemed to work best and I tried a version with maple syrup instead of white sugar but they were too chewy. Still tasty by not shortbread. So I ended up settling with something in between using almond flour, regular sugar and butter.
I hope you enjoy these decadent little holiday treats! I’d love to hear what you think if you try out the almond flour version!
I am going to be taking a little break next week to enjoy time with my family up in Kamloops and I will be back in January with some recipes and inspiration to kick the new year off in a super feel good way. I hope you all find the time to do the same. You deserve it!
Sending lots of love and warmth this holiday season.
Xo Lindsay
Classic Shortbread
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- Author: Lindsay Pleskot
- Total Time: 1 hour
Description
A classic recipe to enjoy over the holidays!
Ingredients
Scale
- ¾ cups butter, room temperature
- ½ cup sugar, plus extra for sprinkling
- ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
Chocolate Drizzle
- ¼ cup dark chocolate chips
- 1–2 tsp coconut oil
- Optional decorations : edible dried roses, toasted nuts like pecans or almonds, toasted coconut, dried lavender
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350F
- Add sugar, flour and salt into a medium sized mixing bowl and whisk with a fork to combine evenly
- Cut your butter into pea sized pieces with a knife or pastry cutter and add to the flour mixture. Add the vanilla. Use the back or a fork or an electric mixer with a paddle attachment to combine the mixture until a ball of dough starts to form.
- Use your hand to form the dough into a ball, wrap in plastic wrap and place in the fridge for 30 minutes.
- Once ready, dust a clean surface with flour and roll the dough into a ½ inch thick square. Cut the dough into approx 1 inch by 1 inch squares. (At this stage, I sprinkled some of the dough with lavendar, some with rose petals and some with toasted coconut. Feel free to add in ingredients as you’d like or leave plain. You can also sprinkle them on top when you drizzle the chocolate on once baked.)
- Place on 2 parchment lined baking sheets, you may need to do more than one batch. Sprinkle with a little bit of sugar.
- Place in the oven to bake for 15-18 minutes, until edges become golden brown. The may seem a bit soft when you first remove the from the oven but they will harden up once cooled.
- While cookies cool, melt your chocolate and coconut oil together either in a double boiler or in the microwave placing it in for one minute at a time, removing to stir and repeating until all melted. This will ensure it doesn’t burn.
- Drizzle or dip your cookies in chocolate and place in the freezer for 10-15 minutes to set before packing up.
- Prep Time: 45 min
- Cook Time: 18 min
- Category: Baking, Desserts
- Method: Oven-Baked
- Cuisine: European
Enjoy!
Almond Flour Shortbread (Gluten-free, Grain-free)
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No reviews
- Author: Lindsay Pleskot
- Total Time: 1 hour
Description
A modified version of classic shortbread, this gluten free version is made with almond flour for a rich nutty flavor.
Ingredients
Scale
- 2 cups almond flour ( I used Bob’s Red Mill)
- ½ cup (8 Tbsp) butter, room temperature
- ⅓ cup granulated sugar
- ¼ tsp. Salt
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350F
- Add sugar, flour and salt into a medium sized mixing bowl and whisk with a fork to combine evenly
- Cut your butter into pea sized pieces with a knife or pastry cutter and add to the flour mixture. Add the vanilla. Use the back or a fork or an electric mixer with a paddle attachment to combine the mixture until a ball of dough starts to form.
- Use your hand to form the dough into a ball, wrap in plastic wrap and place in the fridge for 30 minutes.
- Once ready, dust a clean surface with flour and roll the dough into a ½ inch thick square. Cut the dough into approx 1 inch by 1 inch squares. (At this stage, I sprinkled some of the dough with lavender, some with rose petals and some with toasted coconut. Feel free to add in ingredients as you’d like or leave plain. You can also sprinkle them on top when you drizzle the chocolate on once baked.)
- Place on 2 parchment lined baking sheets, you may need to do more than one batch.
- Place in the oven to bake for 15-18 minutes, until edges become golden brown. The may seem a bit soft when you first remove the from the oven but they will harden up once cooled.
- While cookies cool, melt your chocolate and coconut oil together either in a double boiler or in the microwave placing it in for one minute at a time, removing to stir and repeating until all melted. This will ensure it doesn’t burn.
- Drizzle or dip your cookies in chocolate and place in the freezer for 10-15 minutes to set before packing up.
- Prep Time: 45 minutes
- Cook Time: 15-18 minutes
- Category: Baking, Desserts
- Method: Baked
- Cuisine: European
Happy Holidays!
