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Post by Michigan Gal on Jul 3, 2020 22:56:42 GMT -6
My grandmother was from Scotland and made Scottish shortbread, but I do not have a recipe for it. I've cobbled together one which people seem to like. Granted, shortbread is pretty easy to make.
Has anyone else cobbled together a recipe when they didn't have what they wanted?
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Post by jwal10 on Jul 4, 2020 7:32:36 GMT -6
Recipes are for baking. Sweetie does the baking. I just add a little of this and a little of that.
Sweeties family loves shortbread. Sweetie makes shortbread for Christmas. She makes her Mother's recipe. We went to see her Aunt and Uncle and they had shortbread. Her Dad and Uncle grew up in the same house. Uncle was 9 years younger. Sweetie's Mom was 100% English, 1st generation born in America. Sweetie's Dad was 100% Scotch, first generation born in U.S. Uncles shortbread was Scotch. Sweeties Dad ate the English shortbread. Sweetie thought what her Mom made was what her Grandma (Dads Moms) had always made. Sweetie grew up eating Grandma's Shortbread. Grandma died when Sweetie was 11. Somewhere, sometime Sweeties Mom started making English shortbread. No one knows when and where the recipe came from. Long story short, the 2 brothers had a falling out and didn't see each other until Sweeties Dad got cancer and was terminal. Uncle came up to Oregon to see him. Families stayed in touch. Sweetie got the Uncles recipe when we were there and has made it a few times. Sweetie thought the Scottish shortbread tasted odd. I liked it, I don't like the English shortbread. It sets 2 weeks, minimum and gets a rancid taste (to me at least). Do you let your Scottish shortbread set that long? I don't have the 2 recipes together right now, wondering what the difference is. I know English shortbread is made with lots of butter.
The falling out was because their Mother died when Sweetie's family was on vacation, they never got the call and Grandma was buried before they got back. Uncle was upset and would not see brother. Grandpa lived 15 more years but the 2 brothers never crossed paths. The brother never went to family gatherings when Sweetie's family was around. Now the Uncle has lung cancer. Sad. Had to do the surgery alone because of this mess. Goes to treatment alone. 90 years old. Surgery didn't get it all, too close to artery. Taking another dose of chemo and radiation, now....James
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Post by Michigan Gal on Jul 4, 2020 8:35:37 GMT -6
I let it set long enough too cool. Maybe that is why I've never gotten it quite as dry as Grandma's. I know it should be made with pastry flour, or AP flour with a little cornstarch. Yea, butter. Some recipes call for salt, but I decided the salt did not help. I don't think Grandma used salt.
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Post by jwal10 on Jul 4, 2020 8:43:29 GMT -6
I don't remember the difference, will check recipes when Sweetie gets up....James
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Post by feather on Jul 4, 2020 8:54:14 GMT -6
I have never made shortbread, as in english or scottish shortbread. I've only made short bread cookies. You do know what torture you are putting me through.  Shortbread cookies was my absolute favorite cookie on the holidays and on many more days than I care to admit.  My recipe called for white ap flour, cornstarch, butter (salted butter), and powdered sugar, that's it. They were divine. I hope they are served in heaven. To me, the addition of corn starch lifted the cookies up, from slightly tough to unbelievably fragile but melt in your mouth. I once served them in my home, to a woman evaluating our family. She took a bite, got tears in her eyes, and she said, these are made with real butter.  She loved them. |
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Post by jwal10 on Jul 4, 2020 9:23:37 GMT -6
I like shortbread cookies. Real shortbread is made in squares and cut, poked all over with a fork. My favorite cookie is a sugar cookie my Grandmother made. Nearly shortbread cookie flavor but with a little lemon juice, fluffy with a little granulated sugar on top. My DD makes them perfect. 2 dozen is my Christmas present from her every year. 2 dozen on Fathers Day and 2 dozen on my birthday. 4" around and 3/4" thick in the center, slightly browned edges....James
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Post by feather on Jul 4, 2020 9:37:02 GMT -6
jwal10, "slightly browned edges", mmmmmmmmm 
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Post by jwal10 on Jul 4, 2020 9:57:20 GMT -6
I had it all wrong, come to find out from Sweetie, Uncle Jim's shortbread is Irish. Has powdered sugar and eaten fresh. Sweetie always thought her Mom's was English but Uncle Jim says it was Scottish, she made it for her F-I-L (his father) who was Scottish. May be Scottish, best when sets 2 weeks, 3 is better according to Sweetie. Just 2 1/2 cups regular white flour, 1 cup butter and 1/2 cup + 2 TBS granulated sugar. Uncle Jim says it tastes just like his Mom made. He didn't have the recipe, Sweetie gave it to him and he makes it now but likes his IRISH shortbread better. So do I....James
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Post by jwal10 on Jul 4, 2020 10:16:42 GMT -6
Sweeties Mom used only unsalted butter. Uncle Jim's IRISH shortbread uses a little corn starch. I am not a baker, I know nothing except I like Uncle Jim's IRISH shortbread better, but not as good as Grandma's sugar cookies.
I grew up on Grandma's sugar cookies. Only other cookies I remember were oatmeal cookies, mostly with chocolate chips. She always had some around. She had a pink cookie jar, square in the shape of a bakery building. Kind of like a lighted Christmas "house". The lid had broken and Grandad made a new lid from a piece of wood. DS has it on a shelf in his cabin. She made a few with raisins, for me. I spent a lot of time there in Grandma's kitchen, cooking and baking (well she baked) the year I got polio. It is where I got my love of cooking. Grandma was a good southern cook. Her fried chicken was heavenly. She would go in the chicken pen, grab a chicken, step on the head and pull, gut and pull the feathers, dry, cut up, dredge in seasoned flour and fry in a big old cast iron skillet, in Crisco. She always said "it was better in possum grease but I don't have any, here in Oregon"....James
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Post by feather on Nov 1, 2020 9:41:17 GMT -6
I'm planning on making short bread cookies for a christmas parcel for youngest son and room mate. I made them last year and they loved them.
(I choose not to eat them due to the butter and refined sugar--but they are delicious.)
These are very fragile, I packed them in a bag, then bubble wrapped them, and they went on top of everything else and made it safely through the mail.
Shortbread Sugar Cookies
1/2 cup corn starch
1 cup AP white flour
1/2 cup of powdered sugar (confectioners sugar)
3/4 cup of salted butter (1 and 1/2 sticks)
Mix together, make into a smaller than walnut sized ball, press flat to 3/8ths inch thick, (slight cracks will show on the edge) on parchment, bake at 300 deg F for 15-20 minutes, they will be done when they just begin to slightly brown, mostly white. Let cool.
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Post by Michigan Gal on Nov 1, 2020 19:39:35 GMT -6
Feather, that is similar to my recipe. I use granulated sugar, though. I use 325 degrees.
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Post by feather on Mar 4, 2023 17:55:33 GMT -6
I wanted to note that when I sent the shortbread cookies this year, I made them into shapes, rolling out the dough. They didn't travel as well as my former method.
The former method was rolling into a ball and then flattening to about 1/4th inch thick, which is pretty thick.
In both cases I vacuum-packed them. The rolled ones were thinner.
I'll need to remind myself when I make cookies for Christmas '23.
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Shortbread cookies was my absolute favorite cookie on the holidays and on many more days than I care to admit. 
She loved them.