My mother always made the best shortbread when I was a kid. I took it for granted that shortbread would be around every Christmas, but my piano teacher didn’t. He was British, just like my mum, and he waited every year for my mother’s shortbread, which I would present to him as a holiday thank you, packaged up in a cardboard box or Christmas tin. I think it wasn’t until he actually said something about how much he loved my mother’s shortbread that I started paying attention to this cookie that had no chocolate in it.

Amazingly, shortbread has only three ingredients (sometimes four, but by definition 3). Sugar. Butter. Flour. Traditionally, these three ingredients were weighed out with a very simple ratio – 1 part sugar, 2 parts butter and 3 parts oat flour. More recently, home cooks use a 1:1 ratio of butter and all-purpose flour (1 stick of butter to 1 cup of flour), making the 3 ingredient ratio 1 part sugar, 2 parts butter, 2 parts flour. Both ratios work, but the outcomes are a little different. The 1:2:3 ratio gives you a cookie that is more dense. The 1:2:2 butter:flour ratio gives you a cookie that is more tender.
I love shortbread and this is a good recipe. I used the food processor method. The first time I used high quality butter that I had on hand and didn’t put chips in and it was very good. The second time, I bought cultured butter and put the chocolate chips in and it was even better. The hint to use the parchment paper is good. It’s nice to lift the whole batch out of the pan so neatly.
Did you use European Butter in this recipe?
I like to use cultured butter for as many items as possible, but especially for shortbread where the flavor of the cookie really depends on the flavor of your butter. So, yes, European butter is perfect for this.
I’m not very computer savvy but was looking for your shortbread video and recipe that you made by hand.
I made it last year and was so delicious.
Hi Carol. I believe I did that video on Facebook Live. It should be on my Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/bluejeanchef
There goes my diet. So good.
You mentioned you made an orange shortbread. What did you use for the orange flavor and how much?
Hi Joyce, I added 4 teaspoons of orange zest to the dough. You can see the full instructions under the “Plain or Flavored Shortbread” tab on the recipe card
My father was born and raised in Scotland and when he came to the US he brought a recipe for shortbread. As in yours there was flour butter and sugar but the recipe also called for rice flour. He made it every Christmas.
Could almond flour be equally substituted for the oat flour?
Hi Barb. I haven’t tried a 100% replacement of almond flour in the shortbread, but I think it would work. Give it a try and let me know.
ML
Have you ever tried using this as a bottom pie crust? If so, what ratio do you think works best?
Hi Sharon. I haven’t used this as a bottom pie crust, but I think the ratio would be the same. Give it a whirl and let me know!
Should the recipe call for one and one half of flour rather than two and one half for the shortbread cookies?
Hi Irma. The 12 ounces in the recipe is a weight of flour, which is about 2½ cups in volume. I prefer to weigh the ingredients, but if you are using a volume measurement, it’s about 2½ cups.