Shortbread Cookie Bars Recipes

SHORTBREAD SUGAR COOKIE BARS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Mix flour, butter, confectioners' sugar, salt, and baking powder together in a bowl using an electric mixer on medium speed until well blended. Pat dough into a 9-inch square baking pan. Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar.
• Bake in the preheated oven until edges are golden, 30 to 35 minutes. Cut into bars while still warm.

SCOTTISH SHORTBREAD BARS

Steps:

• In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Combine the flour, baking powder and salt; gradually add to the creamed mixture and mix well. , Spread into an ungreased 11x7-in. baking pan. Prick several times with a fork. Bake at 350° for 20-22 minutes or until edges begin to brown. Dust with confectioners' sugar. Cool on a wire rack. Cut into bars.

SHORTBREAD BARS

Steps:

• Line a 13x9 pan with parchment paper (or foil)
• Preheat oven to 350F
• Using an electric mixer, cream together the butter and powdered sugar until smooth.
• In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt.
• Slowly beat the dry ingredients in the butter mixture until it is fully combined and there are no lumps or dry flour in the dough.
• Spread the dough in the lined pan, patting it so that it is evenly spread across the pan.
• Prick the dough many times with a fork. Sprinkle the coloured sugar evenly across the cookie dough.
• Bake for 33-37 minutes. The edges should be starting to brown.
• Cool on a wire rack.
• Cut into small 1 inch squares. Store in an airtight container for 2 weeks or in the freezer for 2 months.

SHORTBREAD COOKIES

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, mix together the butter and 1 cup of sugar until they are just combined. Add the vanilla. In a medium bowl, sift together the flour and salt, then add them to the butter-and-sugar mixture. Mix on low speed until the dough starts to come together. Dump onto a surface dusted with flour and shape into a flat disk. Wrap in plastic and chill for 30 minutes.
• Roll the dough 1/2-inch thick and cut with a 3 by 1-inch finger-shaped cutter. Place the cookies on an ungreased baking sheet and sprinkle with sugar. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until the edges begin to brown. Allow to cool to room temperature.
• When the cookies are cool, place them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Put 3 ounces of the chocolate in a glass bowl and microwave on high power for 30 seconds. (Don't trust your microwave timer; time it with your watch.) Stir with a wooden spoon. Continue to heat and stir in 30-second increments until the chocolate is just melted. Add the remaining chocolate and allow it to sit at room temperature, stirring often, until it's completely smooth. Stir vigorously until the chocolate is smooth and slightly cooled; stirring makes it glossier.
• Drizzle 1/2 of each cookie with just enough chocolate to coat it.

SHORTBREAD SQUARES

Steps:

• In a large bowl, cream butter and confectioners' sugar until light and fluffy. Combine flour and cornstarch; gradually add to creamed mixture. , Pat into an ungreased 15x10x1-in. baking pan. Pierce several times with a fork. Bake at 325° for 40-45 minutes or until lightly browned. Cut while warm.

SUPER-EASY SHORTBREAD (3 INGREDIENTS)

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 300°.
• Cream butter and sugar together.
• Add flour and mix till texture is like clay.
• Press dough into ungreased 9 x 13 inch pan, prick all over with a fork, and sprinkle with sugar (tilt pan to cover the top evenly, then shake excess sugar back into the sugar canister).
• Bake for about 40-45 minutes (till very lightly browned--just golden around the edges).
• Let stand for 5 minutes, then cut into 24 squares while warm.
• Leave in pan to cool thoroughly. (Shortbread will not be crisp until cool.).
• Less easy method: Chill dough. Roll into 1-inch balls, then press balls to about 1/4-inch thickness on ungreased cookie sheets with the bottom of a glass dipped in sugar (sometimes you can find a glass with a pretty design on the bottom, like a star). Bake at 300° for about 20-25 minutes (until edges are very lightly browned).
• Least easy method: Chill dough. Roll out to about 1/4-inch thickness, sprinkle with sugar, then cut with cookie cutters. Bake on ungreased cookie sheets at 300° for about 20-25 minutes (until edges are very lightly browned).
• Variation: Add 2 tablespoons dried lavender to the creamed butter and sugar before adding flour. It may sound strange, but the flavor is subtle and elegant. Food-grade lavender is usually available in herb bins at health food stores, and I recently found it at a great price from Atlantic Spice online (their Lavender #1).
• Variation: After cutting shortbread into squares (it will still be warm), scatter 1 cup of chocolate chips over the top, let the chocolate soften completely, then spread as a thin layer and let cool completely before removing from pan. (No need to sprinkle shortbread with sugar before baking if you plan to do this.).
• Variation: Stir 1 cup chocolate chips or butterscotch chips into the dough before pressing into pan. You can also try melting the butterscotch over the top, as above. In England, you'll find "caramel shortbread," which has a layer of caramel and a layer of chocolate on top of the shortbread. It's wonderful (of course!). I've tried various ways of doing this and various kinds of caramel, but it's been a while and I don't remember what works best. It can be tricky not to make a mess!