Scottish Shortbread. Scottish Shortbread Tips Are shortbread and butter cookies the same? While both have a higher proportion of butter in their recipes, butter cookies contain more sugar and flour, are baked at a higher temperature and tend to hold their shape when baked. Shortbread typically has a higher ratio of butter to flour, is baked at a lower temperature and has a dry, crumbly melt-in-your-mouth quality.

Cream the butter and the icing sugar together until pale and smooth. Add the flour and cornflour and mix until a dough is formed. Shortbread is one of the most famous Scottish cookies. You can have Scottish Shortbread using 4 ingredients and 9 steps. Here is how you achieve it.

Ingredients of Scottish Shortbread

It's 1 lb of butter softened.
It's 1 cup of sugar.
Prepare 4-4 1/2 cups of flour (approximately).
It's Pinch of salt.

It's eaten around Christmas and is also an essential part of Hogmanay, the traditional Scottish New Year. Made with a lot of butter, this was considered a special treat when butter was a luxury item. Traditionally Scottish shortbread is baked in either a rectangular or square slab and cut into fingers, as individual round biscuits, or in one large circle and cut into triangles. But you can cut them any shape you like and also use cookie stamps.

Scottish Shortbread step by step

Cream butter and sugar.
Sift flour and salt.
Add about 4 cups of flour to butter mixture a 1/2 cup or so at a time mixing thoroughly between additions until dough forms a ball adding more flour as needed.
Roll out into a rectangle or press evenly into a 9 by 12 baking pan (I use a glass baking pan).
About 1/2 to 3/4 inch thick, score with a knife into approximate 1 1/2 x 3 inch pieces and dock with a fork.
Bake in a 325 Degree oven for 60 to 75 minutes until lightly browned.
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Cool in pan for 5 minutes and cut along score marks while still warm, remove from pan and cool on wire rack.
Yield 24 biscuits.

Baked in large rounds to resemble the sun and cut into wedges, shortbread is traditionally served in Scotland on winter solstice, Christmas, New Year's Eve, and New Year's Day. It's wonderful with coffee or tea any time of day — and since it's appealingly plain, kids love it as much as grown-ups. Combine flours; gradually beat into creamed mixture. Cool completely on a wire rack. In a mixing bowl, cream together the sugars and the butter.