Piped Shortbread Cookies

Small items like cookies are an essential component of every cook’s repertoire. The thoughtfulness of something homemade helps people know how much we regard them, whether as a small snack, after dinner with coffee, or as a considerate hostess present while visiting friends.

Shortbread is one of my favorite cookies. If I’m out and about and there’s a plate of cookies, I’ll opt for the shortbread (if it’s handmade, I don’t like the Danish ones in the blue tins).

While shortbread originated in Scotland, similar biscuits have been made in other European nations for centuries. In Sweden, for example, another famous shortbread recipe is called drmmar, which translates as “dreams.” The key difference between Scottish shortbread and Swedish drmmar is that the butter is browned in a big heavy pan over medium-low heat without stirring for approximately 15 minutes, or until the butter is a light tan color.

Scottish shortbread is an unleavened biscuit prepared traditionally with one part white sugar, two parts butter, and three parts oatmeal flour. Today, most people use simple white (wheat) flour. The texture changes when additional components, such as cornflour, are added. Gluten-free flours work well as a replacement.

Shortbread got its name from its crumbly texture (an archaic meaning of the term short). The high fat content of the butter contributes to its smoothness. The short or crumbly texture is caused by the fat, which prevents the production of long protein gluten strands. Shortening is a similar term that refers to any fat that may be added to generate a short or crumbly texture. That’s why you can defeat it in 10 minutes and it never gets difficult. Shortbread cookies keep their form under pressure; if you just combine the dough until it stays together, you can press it out into big rounds or slabs cut to shape and cook it for a nice firm cookie that is ideal for lunch boxes.

You may pipe it for something a little more special. You must defeat it in order to do this. What is the difference, you may wonder? My favorite recipe calls for 10 minutes of beating. I was wondering whether that was truly required.

After some experimentation I can say yes it is.

In the recipe below, I blended the ingredients until they were just incorporated. It took roughly two minutes to complete this task.

As you can see, it hadn’t changed color, but it was still staying together. It was quite difficult to pipe, and the cookies were flatter after cooking. At this point, I would flatten it into a disc or slab, chop it, and cook it. Traditionally, the slabs and discs were sliced after cooking, but I like to do it ahead of time.

After five minutes, the mixture was lighter, simpler to pipe, and retained its form a bit better.

It was extremely pale, light, and easy to pipe after ten minutes of beating, and it maintained the ridges from the piping considerably better after cooking.

As the mixture in the bag and dish warmed, it retained its form less while frying, so I’ll chill it between trays next time.

The cookies were done in approximately eight minutes in my oven. The completed product is seen below.

The picture below demonstrates the effects of various levels of beating after the cookies have been baked. Cookies after two minutes of beating are shown above the number 2, those after five minutes of beating are shown above the number 5, and those on the right are after 10 minutes of pounding.

Piped Shortbread Cookies/Biscuits

This recipe yields roughly 120 cookies at 1 inch.When piped to a length of roughly 2.5 centimeters

Ingredients

1 cup softened butter (250 g)
1 cup, 185 g all-purpose flour cup, 75 g confectioners sugar cup, 45 g cornflour
2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Chocolate chips, nuts, and maraschino cherries

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 F (180 C.)
2. For 10 minutes, cream together the butter, flours, vanilla, and confectioners sugar.
3. Drop from a teaspoon onto a cookie sheet or pipe a shape using a pastry bag. Decorate with maraschino cherry slices or other delectable garnishes.
4. Bake for 15 to 18 minutes, or until the bottoms are gently browned.

Drömmar

Makes approximately 100 cookies

Ingredients

1 cup, 375 g butter cup, 150 g white sugar
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 teaspoon cinnamon powder
2 cup (375 g) all-purpose flour
50-100 toasted blanched whole almonds

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 F /180 C.
2. In a large heavy skillet, melt the butter over medium-low heat without stirring for approximately 15 minutes, or until the butter is a light tan color. Pour everything into a mixing bowl, including the solid chunks. Cool until firm at room temperature.
3. In the mixer bowl, add the browned butter, sugar, vanilla, and cinnamon. Stir in the flour and beat for 3 minutes. If you wish to pipe the cookies, allow the dough to rest for 10 minutes.
4. Form the dough into 1-inch balls. Place 1 inch apart on baking sheets coated with parchment paper. Top with an almond and push gently into the dough.
5. 12-15 minutes, or until golden brown. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.