This is a recipe for whipped shortbreads that I got from my good friend Leona, many years ago. Leona and I met at Bingo one night not too long after I had moved to London, Ontario. She just happened to be sitting next to me and had not long since moved there herself.
It was a happy co-incidence that we met that night. We had both gone on our own just to get out of the house and had sat at the same table. We got to talking as you do. I found out she was from New Brunswick, and I was from Nova Scotia.
The gal sitting across from us just happened to be from Nova Scotia too. She also happened to live on my street. Her name was Debbie. We are all still friends.
I was heavily pregnant for my son Douglas at that point. I remember Debbie saying to me that when I went into labor, for my husband to bring the other three kids down to hers to watch until my sister could get there. (She lived in Windsor at the time.)
This turned out to be very fortuitous as the very next night at supper time, I went into labour! Talk about a happy co-incidence or what! Anyways, the three of us became fast friends and are friends to this day.
Leona was a great cook. I learned a lot from her and she was always happy to share her recipes with me. This was her recipe for Whipped Shortbreads.
I had never heard of Whipped Shortbreads before. They are so very easy to make. They are as simple to make as whipping three ingredients together in a bowl and then dropping them onto a baking sheet.
I make them every year. You will see fancier ones, and ones calling for all sorts, such as cornstarch and vanilla and salt. You don't need any of that stuff.
These always turn out perfectly with no faffing about or trouble. Easy peasy lemon squeasy as they say.
I always use salted butter, which alleviates the need to use salt in the recipe. I also like to sift the icing sugar first. This helps to prevent lumps.
I always just drop them onto the baking sheet with a spoon, which gives them a craggy surface. My sister likes to chill the dough overnight.
The next day she scoops them out with a cookie scoop. She places them onto the baking sheet and then flattens them slightly.
Today the recipe was doubled. Half of the cookies she flattened slightly with the bottom of a drinking glass, the other half were flattened slightly with a fork.
Some were decorated with bits of candied cherries. Red and green. You have to have a bit of red and green for Christmas don't you!
She sprinkled Christmas sprinkles on some as well. Then she left some of them plain for Dan who doesn't really like decorations on anything.
He's a simple man with simple tastes. Me, I like a bit of bling for the holidays!
Don't you love this little cut glass tray we put them on to serve? My sister collects old bits and oddments of serving ware and china which she sells.
This is one of them. You can find her page on IG. Its @lostloveliesfound. She has some really nice things and not all of it is listed on IG yet. I love using it for props.
Of couse I am very careful not to break it. "You break it you buy!" As Lane's mother on Gilmore Girls would say!
I don't want to break anything, but I would not mind buying a few things! I love her collection!
I love being here with my Sister. I have been here over a month now. We get along really well. We always have done. We have a lot in common, besides being sisters.
We both love to do art and crafts. She used to love to cook and bake, not so much anymore. But she does love to do fermenting and makes her own Kombucha and Kefir. She also makes her own Kraut.
The last batch she made was Salsa Kraut. I hope to get her making some on here for us. Its really good! She also sprouts and makes raw goodies. Like Grawnola and the scrummiest date squares. None of them cooked.
She also has a dehydrator she uses, and she does some cannibis cooking. Makes her own tinctures, etc. I have not tried any of that stuff. But my dad likes her cookies. He says he sleeps really well. (These are not those. lol)
I have to laugh at that because when we were teenagers, he was very much opposed to the use of such things. Mind you it was illegal back then, but is quite legal now!
Back to these cookies. Whipped Shortbreads. We like to bake them until they are golden brown on the bottom and just around the edges. That is shortbread perfection.
These have the perfect texture. They are short and buttery. They melt in your mouth. That is everything a good shortbread should be.
You would expect nothing less from one of Leona's recipes. I have shared them on here before. You might like Leona's Peanut Butter Balls. They have been a favourite in my home for over 40 years now! I will probably be making some this week.
In the meantime, enjoy these lush and rich crisp Whipped Shortbreads. Prepare to fall in love.
Whipped Shortbreads
Yield: Makes about 2 dozen
Author: Marie Rayner
prep time: 10 Mincook time: 17 Mintotal time: 27 Min
All the yumminess of shortbread cookies without any of the hassle of having to roll them out, etc. Three ingredients and easy peasy lemon squeasy!
Ingredients
240g of butter (1 cup) room temperature
210g of plain flour (1 1/2 cups)
70g icing sugar (1/2 cup)
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 180*C/350*F/ gas mark 4. Line several baking sheets with baking parchment. Set aside.
Place all of the ingredients into a large bowl and beat with an electric mixer for 10 minutes until light and fluffy. Drop by the teaspoon onto the baking sheets. (Leave about 2 inches of space in between each to allow for spreading.) Sprinkle the tops with a varieity or sprinkles or coloured sugars, or chopped green and red cherries.
Bake for about 17 minutes until the bottoms are coloured light brown. Allow to cool on the baking sheets. Store in an airtight container.
notes:
My sister doubled the recipe, chilled the dough overnight and then scooped out with a cookie scoop. She flattened half of them slightly with the bottom of a glass and decorated with a piece of candied cherry. The other half she flattened slightly with a fork, sprinkling half with sprinkles and leaving half plain for Dan.
Did you make this recipe?
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These sound great - and such simple ingredients that I already have at home. I love a nice, buttery shortbread. I think I'll follow your sister's advice and make up the dough today and bake them tomorrow.
These are so pretty, Marie. Very cheerful snd Christmasy. My recipe is similar but has cornstarch in it. It makes 5 dozen (I use a pound of butter). I shape them and freeze them. Then when I want a dozen fresh shortbread, I bake them from frozen. It just takes a couple of extra minutes. I never thought to flatten them. I'm making a batch today so will try that. I sometimes top mine with a piece of chocolate and then dust with icing sugar. Happy first day of winter. Stay safe, stay warm snd cizy. Love and hugs, Elaine
That sounds like it would be easy to freeze and then bake laer. I love that and your idea of topping with a bit of chocolate and then dusting with icing sugar! Hope your day was a happy one yeserday! Love you. Stay safe, love and hugs, xoxo
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Welcome, I'm Marie
Canadian lover of all things British. I cook every day and like to share it with you!
A third of my life was spent living in the UK. I learned to love the people, the country and the cuisine. I have always been an Anglophile. You will find plenty of traditional British recipes here in my English Kitchen. There are lots of North American recipes also, but then again, I am a Canadian by birth. I like to think of my page as a happy mix of both. If you are looking for something and cannot find it, don't be afraid to ask! I am always happy to help and point you in the right direction, even if it exists on another page, or in one of my many cookbooks.
These sound great - and such simple ingredients that I already have at home. I love a nice, buttery shortbread. I think I'll follow your sister's advice and make up the dough today and bake them tomorrow.
ReplyDeleteI hope that you are enjoying them Marie! xoxo
DeleteThese are so pretty, Marie. Very cheerful snd Christmasy. My recipe is similar but has cornstarch in it. It makes 5 dozen (I use a pound of butter). I shape them and freeze them. Then when I want a dozen fresh shortbread, I bake them from frozen. It just takes a couple of extra minutes. I never thought to flatten them. I'm making a batch today so will try that. I sometimes top mine with a piece of chocolate and then dust with icing sugar. Happy first day of winter. Stay safe, stay warm snd cizy. Love and hugs, Elaine
ReplyDeleteThat sounds like it would be easy to freeze and then bake laer. I love that and your idea of topping with a bit of chocolate and then dusting with icing sugar! Hope your day was a happy one yeserday! Love you. Stay safe, love and hugs, xoxo
DeleteMerry Christmas. Love your blog. Thank you for all the recipes and pictures and stories. Stay healthy and have a healthy 2021. God bless.
ReplyDeleteThank you. Merry Christmas and a happy and healthy 2021 for you also! xoxo
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