Classic shortbread with a flavour twist just in time for Christmas gifting.
Photographs: Natasha Liviero
Text: Natasha Liviero
Shortbread
Makes 24 triangles
Ingredients:
10g lemon zest
60g castor sugar
130g unsalted butter, room temperature
130g flour
60g rice flour
30g dark chocolate, finely chopped (70%)
30g pistachios, finely chopped
A pinch of salt
Castor sugar for dusting
Method:
Set oven to 170C/ 150C fan.
Grease and line the base of 3 x 15cm springform cake tins.
Zest the lemons into the bowl of a stand mixer and rub into the sugar with your fingertips.
Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy with a paddle attachment.
Sift the different flours and add them to the butter mixture, together with the chocolate, pistachios, and salt.
Mix on low speed until the mixture resembles sea sand.
With your hands, bring the dough together until it forms a soft, smooth ball. Do not overwork the dough.
Weigh the dough and divide it by three. Press each third into the cake tins and smooth the top with the back of a spoon for an even surface.
With the tines of a small fork, gently press into the dough around the sides of the tin.
Mark out eight triangles with a sharp knife, pricking each one with a fork a few times.
Rest the shortbread in the fridge for 15 minutes.
Bake for approximately 40 minutes or until lightly browned.
Remove from the oven and cut through the marked slices, followed by a generous sprinkling of castor sugar. Rest for 5 minutes in the tin.
Gently remove the shortbread from the tins onto a cooling rack.
Once completely cooled, store the shortbread in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
Notes:
* If you don’t have 15cm springform baking tins, at step 8 of the recipe, roll out the dough between two pieces of baking paper to a thickness of about 8mm and refrigerate until firm enough to cut rounds/triangles/shapes with a cookie cutter. Place on a lined baking tray and rest in the fridge for 15 minutes. Bake for approximately 20 minutes or until the edges begin to turn golden brown and continue from step 13.
* If the shortbread is not crunchy enough, return it to a 100C oven and dry to your liking - the low temperature will not melt the sugar sprinkled on top.
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