Old-Fashioned Shortbread
Updated Dec. 16, 2024
- Total Time
- 4 hours
- Prep Time
- 5 minutes
- Cook Time
- 55 minutes, plus 3 hours’ chilling and cooling
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
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Ingredients
- ½cup/82 grams dried sour cherries
- ⅓cup/50 grams diced candied orange peel
- ¼cup/50 grams bourbon or rye
- ¾cup/168 grams unsalted butter, at room temperature
- ½cup/100 grams sugar
- ½teaspoon fine salt
- 1large egg, separated
- 1½cups/ 195 grams all-purpose flour
- ½cup/50 grams sliced blanched almonds
Nutritional analysis per serving (24 servings)
123 calories; 7 grams fat; 4 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 2 grams monounsaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 13 grams carbohydrates; 0 grams dietary fiber; 6 grams sugars; 2 grams protein; 54 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
- Step 1
Combine the cherries, orange peel and bourbon in a small saucepan. Heat over medium until bubbling, then remove from the heat and stir. Let sit until cool. (To cool to room temperature more quickly, transfer to a bowl.)
- Step 2
Beat the butter, sugar and salt using the paddle attachment of a stand mixer on medium-low speed until pale yellow and creamy. Beat in the egg yolk until incorporated, then scrape the bowl. Beat in the flour on low speed until the dough forms a soft, smooth mass. You also can beat everything by hand with a wooden spoon.
- Step 3
Using your hand, scoop the cherry mixture out of the bourbon, gently squeezing out excess liquid and reserving the bourbon. Add the cherry mixture to the dough, along with the almonds. Mix until evenly distributed.
- Step 4
Shape the dough into a log 2 inches in diameter (about 12 inches long) on a large sheet of plastic wrap. Wrap tightly and refrigerate until firm, at least 2 hours and up to 3 days. (Refrigerate the egg white and reserved bourbon too.)
- Step 5
Heat the oven to 350 degrees when ready to bake and line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Step 6
Whisk 1 teaspoon reserved bourbon into the egg white. (Save the rest for a cocktail.) Cut the log into ½-inch-thick slices and space an inch apart on the baking sheets. Brush or rub the egg white evenly over the tops.
- Step 7
Bake 1 sheet at a time until golden brown, 16 to 18 minutes. Cool completely on the sheets. The shortbread will keep in an airtight container for up to a week.
Private Notes
Comments
You can skip the bourbon and all the steps with it (soaking the fruit, draining it and using the bourbon for the egg white wash). You can add 2 teaspoons vanilla extract when you add the egg yolk. You can then just stir in the dried cherries and candied orange peel in step 3, along with the almonds. You don't have to then brush the rounds with the egg white, but if you want your cookies to have a little shine, you can whisk a teaspoon water into the egg white.
I just finished baking my first batch. These are without a doubt winners! I think paired with some sharp cheese on an appetizer board is going to work perfectly. Just sweet enough. Also, what a great recipe. Just follow along! This is definitely one to use your stand mixer. A food processor will not work to cream the butter, sugar and egg yolk. One thought is to not skip the egg wash. I will be up late tonight mixing up additional batch to be certain to have enough to share these.
Judy, your cookies may have spread because the dough was over beaten/creamed. Shortbread dough should be just-mixed. Maybe try mixing everything by hand, if you used a mixer the first time. Also, I have found that some parchment papers are more slippery than others. I used to bake butter-heavy shortbread on an unbuttered pan! You might try a different paper.
I'm all for soaking things (especially dried cherries) in bourbon, but I also prefer really crisp shortbread. These were excellent to start, but within an hour had already lost crispness. And the morning after, well, they are yet softer. Yes, I drained the cherries thoroughly. Think I'll try the same recipe without fruit (but keep the glaze) and see what happens...
FABULOUS! I did not have rye whiskey, so I used Jameson Irish Whiskey. I added candied (not crystallised) ginger & candied lemon peel to the fruit mix. For the glaze, I used 1 TABLESPOON of the Jameson syrup to the 1 egg white to amplify the whiskey. My slices were 0.64cm thick, but they took longer to bake b/c of the fruit content (25-27 minutes). At first, I was scared b/c they looked overdone, but weren't. Delicious results. Everyone at the craic thought so too!
Flavor and texture were excellent; it could have used more bourbon flavor. Next time, I'll use more to soak the fruit and I'll soak overnight. I'm new to baking so any other suggestions as to how to increase that element and keep the balance of the other ingredients are most certainly welcome.