Short n Sweet

Last week my recipe of the week was Shortbread Cookies. I didn't get to posting it, I had another busy week. I do have a good excuse, however, I was cooking for a dear client. Her sweet lil 6 year old girl is in the midst of being diagnosed, as she's not been well, so they're trying a certain diet (wheat free, soy free, dairy free, nut free, bean free) to see if it helps her condition. Poor lil thing, I'm really hoping my food helps her out! I made some safe lasagna and a pasta dish with rice pastas, a creamy potato broccoli soup and some nori rolls filled with fresh raw veggies. Pure love food! I hope it heals her! :-) A gal can hope can't she?

Back to the short breads....which came out tremendously delicious I might add.... I grew up snacking on these delectable numbers regularly- Walker's Short breads to be precise. My mother ALWAYS had a tin of them on the top shelf in our fancy dish cupboard, the one that no one really went in. Unless they knew there was a secret stash of fancy cookies in it, then they went in it often. :) Anyhow, my mom loved to have her evening cup of Lipton tea and a lil sweet of some sort, and the favorite was often shortbread cookies. I too loved them, and it sure was hard to stop after just one. I loved the perfect balance of sweetness and the denseness yet delicacy of the crumb, not to mention the cute little holes that were poked in the tops to ventilate during baking. Alas, I took on the famed Scottish cookie for my project of the week. Although, the classic Scottish recipe is 3-2-1. 3 parts flour, 2 parts butter, 1 part sugar- that's it. Also, often you will find rice flour or oat flour as being a main ingredient in the delectable cookie. My guess is it probably lends to its' delightfully crumbly texture. I didn't really stick to the ol' classic Scottish version, but rather did my own interpretation. I added a touch of salt and vanilla extract, but also tried a variety of shapes in the baking process. Since it's close to a certain holiday, I thought hearts were appropriate. :) I'm already thinking though, what other fun things could I add into this great cookie base? Lavender flowers? Lemon thyme? Chocolate bits? Slivered almonds? So many possibilities, we must experiment and find out! :) For now, here's the outcome of my short breads. They're so cute.....