What do the American Pound Cake and Scottish Shortbread have in common? They both contain lots of flour, butter, and sugar. The Scottish Shortbread has minimal ingredients including a secret ingredient providing its unique texture. This is a fun interactive recipe to make with kids. These cookies are quick to make and get better with time!
A Little Scottish Shortbread History
A traditional Scottish Shortbread recipe is one part sugar, two parts butter, and three parts flour. But who’s counting, since those ingredients are the prominent ones in a traditional recipe and you can find many variations of those ratios. While the Scottish Shortbread is a thick cookie, not a cake like the American Pound Cake, it is unlike many shortbread cookies. While the Scottish version is rich and buttery, it has the unique addition of rice flour to provide a sandy texture.
Evolution From “Short” Bread to “Shortbread” Cookie
The Scottish Shortbread has deep, 12th century historical roots . It was once only made of oats and yeast like a bread with sugar sprinkled on top. Any oat and yeast leftover bread dough was cooked at low temperatures to create a dense savory bread. Over time, butter replaced the yeast thus creating a crumbly “cookie” instead of “bread”. Sugar was added (thanks to Mary, Queen of Scots) and the modern sweet and crumbly Scottish Shortbread cookie was born.
“Shortbread” Name Origins
The butter provides the “shortening”, a process referring to the inability to create long gluten strands (“short” strands) thus giving the tender, “sandy” texture. “Shortening” also refers to the term for “fat” in a recipe; in this case, fat meant butter. During those earlier centuries, the crumbly texture was called “short”. Thus, the name “shortbread” was formed, even though it’s technically a cookie. 😊
When is the Scottish Shortbread Eaten?
Long ago, butter was an expensive ingredient, so Scottish Shortbread cookies were only served on special occasions like weddings and during the holidays. In fact, January 6th (also Epiphany) is “National Shortbread Day”. However, these days, Scottish Shortbread cookies are enjoyed throughout the year. Create designs on top of the Scottish Shortbread cookies to fit any celebration of the year. Make them festive!
What’s Up With the 3 Common Scottish Shortbread Shapes?
A traditional Scottish Shortbread is usually baked in one of three shapes. The circle with slices like pizza or pie are called “petticoat tails”. This shape is thought to resemble 16th century’s Mary, Queen of Scot’s full petticoat design. This shape was her preferred cut of shortbread. The common rectangular shape is called “shortbread fingers” and the round cookies are called “shortbread rounds”. All three may have the traditional fork tine holes or an emblem to represent an occasion.
My Personal Thoughts on Shortbread
I have always loved any kind of shortbread cookie. I’m intrigued by the cookie’s simplicity that keeps calling your name as you eat… can’t eat just one! In fact, my favorite Girl Scout cookie used to be the shortbread (Trefoils). Well, it was actually a toss up between Trefoils and Thin Mints. Nevertheless, I’m a sucker for shortbread. I love its versatility. I like to ground up shortbread cookies (like flour) to use as a base ingredient for other desserts like brownies. They are great for dipping in sweet dips like caramel or chocolate and crumbling over or mixing in ice cream. YUM!
With it being Girl Scout cookie season, I was inspired to make a shortbread cookie. But, more specifically, I’ve been intrigued by the Scottish version and have been for years. A traditional, simple Scottish recipe was calling my name with the unique addition of rice flour. Since I am a gluten-free eater now, I always have rice flour on hand for my gluten-free bakes. This cookie just seemed perfect right now and for me. Check out my gluten-free Scottish Shortbread recipe; even my gluten-eaten husband can’t tell a difference the two. I’m so happy I can eat and actually LOVE them! They are a fantastically cute, yet hearty dessert.
Scottish Shortbread Ingredients & Kid Friendly!
The simple ingredients for my Scottish Shortbread recipe are all-purpose flour, rice flour (secret ingredient), sugar, and butter. Add salt if using unsalted butter. Think of them like a fancy, very thick animal cracker. If you have picky kids, they might enjoy this recipe since it has so few ingredients. In addition, this recipe is great to make WITH kids. They would love the hands-on, interactive part where you mix the ingredients by hand and press the dough in the pan! Oh, and don’t forget the decor on top!
Preheat Oven & Prepare Pan
This recipe comes together very quickly. Begin by preheating the oven to 325˚F (163˚C). This cookie bakes LOW and SLOW. Then, line a 13×9-inch baking dish with overhanging parchment paper.
TIP: Use scissors to cut a slit at each corner down to the pan so the flaps overlap, and the paper stays smooth in the pan.
Cream Butter & Sugar
Use a hand mixer or a spoon to stir 3 sticks of softened butter until smooth. Add 225 g (1 cup) superfine sugar. I like to use superfine sugar in baking because it “melts” easily and quickly into the wet ingredients resulting in a smooth consistency for dough and batter. Then, mix or stir again until well combined and the butter is light, fluffy, and pale in color.
TIP: Don’t have, can’t find, don’t want to use superfine sugar? You can simply use a food processor to pulverize your granulated sugar to reach that superfine consistency, though not powder form.
Sift Dry Ingredients
In a separate bowl, combine 360 grams (3 cups) of all-purpose flour, 160 grams (1 cup) of rice flour, and ½ teaspoon of salt, IF using unsalted butter. Stir all ingredients until combined. Then, sift them into the bowl over the butter mixture.
Mix Dry Ingredients with Butter
Use your hands to combine the mixture into a dough. Careful not to overmix the dough. This is a great time to get the kiddos involved! The dough will look dry and be crumbly after you have mixed everything together. The dough has been mixed enough when you squeeze the crumbled dough together and it forms a ball that stays together.
TIP: You could use a spoon or stand mixer, but using your hands is the traditional, Scottish way. Also, the dough will be dense, so I find it easier just using my hands. The soft butter and cold flour feel quite nice squishing through the fingers. 😉
“Shaping” the Scottish Shortbread
I like the traditional Scottish “shortbread fingers” shape as they are very easy to create. So, I bake my cookies in a baking dish. You could make the “petticoat tails” by placing the dough in a pizza or pie pan. And for the “shortbread rounds” you can roll the dough in a log and cut out into ¼-½-inch circles. Nevertheless, for the rectangles (shortbread fingers), press the dough evenly into the parchment-lined baking dish. Press the mixture down using a spatula or your hands… knuckles are quite common to use.
TIP: I like to use a small rolling pin to smooth out the top and pack down the dough. However, this is NOT necessary. You could use a spatula to flatten out the top, if you’d like.
Scoring the Scottish Shortbread Fingers
Once the dough is pressed well into the pan, use a knife to score (¼ inch) the dough in 7-8 rows across and 4 rows down to make 28-35 shortbread cookies. You’ll end up with 3″or 4″ x 1″ rectangles. Use fork tines to prick, rather deeply, the dough 3-4 times in each scored, rectangle section. The dough holes will somewhat close after baking. The holes are not necessary, just for decoration.
TIP: I like to score the bars into rectangles and prick each bar with fork tines BEFORE baking. However, you can save time and cut fully into bars and prick the tops AFTER the shortbread exits the oven forgetting the “pre” scoring. Scoring just helps to define the cuts, but you’ll have to cut all the way through to define the bars after baking, anyway.
Bake & Fully Cut Rectangles
Bake the shortbread in the pan in the preheated oven for 45 minutes or until golden brown.
While the shortbread is still warm just out of the oven, cut the shortbread (while still in the pan) all the way through along the scored sections to make 28-35 shortbread cookies. Sprinkle superfine sugar over the top to add sparkle and a little more sweetness. If your holes have mostly closed, you can go back with a fork and make the holes more defined. The holes are traditional in Scottish Shortbread to decorate a simple cookie for those special occasions.
TIP: The purpose of the holes is for decoration only. You can technically not add the holes and the recipe and taste will NOT be affected.
Cool Before Consuming
Allow the shortbread to cool for at least 15 minutes in the pan. Then, remove the shortbread using the overhanging parchment paper and allow them to finish cooling on a wire rack while still in the paper. They need to cool so they set up completely making them easy to separate into full rectangle bars with smooth edges.
Close-up Views!
Notice how easily they separate after cooling. The holes are prominent after we redefined them. You can see the sugar on top giving them a little sparkle. They snap nicely as a shortbread should and have toasty bottoms due to the butter along with a low and slow bake. There is a bit of crumble and sandy texture from the rice flour. Cutting the rectangles while still warm yielded smooth sides. This is a nice, thick, snappy shortbread.
Storing Scottish Shortbread
Shortbread ages well with time, so leave the cookies at room temperature in a covered container for days and enjoy! In fact, we’ve had these bars last for several weeks in the pantry and they still tasted wonderfully!
Optional Flavor Mix-ins
For adding a little oomph to the recipe, you can add to the dough chopped dried fruit, chopped nuts, bits of chocolate, and even Earl Gray Tea (removed from the sachet). Traditionally, Scottish Shortbread can have coriander or caraway seeds. Why not add fruit peel, orange zest, or crystallized ginger to the dough, too?
Scottish Shortbread Final Thoughts
If you like shortbread, you’ll love this recipe (at least in my opinion and Scott’s, too). The recipe is simple and baking them in a pan is as easy as pie. Think of them as a bar cookie. While they are simple, the decorative tops add elegance. Serve them anytime and for any occasion. Why have an occasion? Just make them whenever you want something sweet. 😉
Baker’s Thoughts
This is a very easy recipe. If you don’t want to take the time to score the bars, just forego it. Once the bars are baked, cut them into serving pieces quickly while they are still hot! Forget the fork tine holes too, if you want. However, for a traditional Scottish look, you’ll want to add the fork tine holes. You likely have the ingredients on hand. If you buy a bag of rice flour and don’t intend to use if often, just store it in the freezer and it will be fine to use months down the road (if you can wait that long before making this recipe again). Give this one a try. I think you might be surprised at how good such a simple cookie recipe can be.
Taster’s Thoughts
When Scott first tasted this recipe, he said “Wow!” He knew the ingredients in the recipe before tasting the cookies. I think with him knowing this recipe only had 4 ingredients, he didn’t have very high expectations… thus, his reaction. He has been enjoying these shortbread cookies for several weeks, since I made multiple batches for recipe testing. He likes the tender, sandy texture. They aren’t a “hard” cookie, but they do have a simple snap. The rice flour isn’t really defined in flavor, though Scott says this shortbread cookie tastes pleasantly different from other shortbread recipes. I attribute that comment to the rice flavor. Certainly, the rice flour contributes to the texture. Of course, you can’t NOT like the richness from the butter. Overall, this cookie is a winner and keeper. It’s pretty, too!
Check out my YouTube video on making this recipe for visual details. “Simple Scottish Shortbread Cookies: 4 Ingredients Only Including a Secret Ingredient!“
Simple 4-Ingredient Scottish Shortbread Cookies
Ingredients
- 360 g (3 cups) all-purpose flour fluffed, scooped, & leveled off if using a measuring cup
- 160 g (1 cup) rice flour
- 225 g (1 cup) granulated sugar superfine is preferred (pulse regular granulated sugar in a food processor until fine)
- 340 g (12 oz / 3 sticks) butter, softened salted or unsalted
- ½ tsp salt add only if using unsalted butter
Flavor Options
- 1 tsp vanilla or 1 vanilla bean split and scraped removing beans
- ⅓- ½ cup candied ginger or other dried fruit like cranberries raisins, etc.
- ⅓- ½ cup of chopped nuts almonds, pecans, walnuts, pistachios, etc.
- ⅓- ½ cup mini chocolate chips/chunks
- Earl Grey flavoring open 1 tea bag and pour the tea contents into the dough
- 1 tbsp lemon zest (from 1 lemon) lime, or orange
- chocolate dip (for dipping after cookies have cooled)
Instructions
- Preheat oven 325˚F (163˚C). Line a 13×9-inch baking dish with overhanging parchment paper.TIP: Use scissors to cut a slit at each corner down to the pan so the flaps overlap, and the paper stays smooth in the pan.
- Use a hand mixer or a spoon and stir butter until smooth. Add sugar and mix or stir again until well combined and the butter is light, fluffy, and pale in color.TIP: Don't have, can't find, don't want to use superfine sugar? You can simply use a food processor to pulverize your granulated sugar to reach that superfine consistency, though not powder form.
- In a separate bowl, combine both flours and salt, if using. Then, sift them into the bowl on top of the butter mixture.
- Before mixing, add any optional flavorings. Then, use a spoon or your hands to quickly combine the mixture into a dough. The dough will look dry and be crumbly after you have mixed everything together. The dough has been mixed enough when you squeeze the crumbled dough together and it forms a ball that stays together.
- Press dough evenly into the parchment-lined baking dish. You can use your hands, knuckles, or a spatula. Once the dough is compacted, you can use a small rolling pin to smooth out the top.
- Then, use a knife to score, ¼-inch deep, the dough 7-8 rows across by 4 rows down to make 28-35 shortbread cookies. Use fork tines to prick rather deeply the dough 3-4 times in each scored section. The dough holes will somewhat close after baking.TIP: Adding fork tine holes is decorative only. It is not necessary, just traditional.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 45 minutes or until golden brown.
- Once pan is removed from the oven and the shortbread is still warm, cut the shortbread (while still in pan) all the way through along the scored sections to make 28-35 shortbread cookies. If your holes have mostly closed, you can go back with a fork and make the holes more defined. Sprinkle superfine sugar over the top.
- Allow the bars to cool in the pan for at least 15 minutes.
- Remove the shortbread from the pan using the overhanging parchment paper and allow the cookies to finish cooling on a wire rack.TIP: Cooling is important so the bars set up nicely making them easier to separate smoothly.
Video
Notes
Interested in some other sweet treat recipes? Check these out.
Nutella Swirl Pumpkin Pie with Gingersnap Cookie Crust
Latin American Tres Leches Cake
Australian & New Zealand Pavlova
New Zealand Kiwi Quick Bread (Regular & Gluten Free)
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