Guest post by the Food Floozie!
It's November now ... I can hardly believe it. I'm behind on my holiday baking.
I don't do much shopping for gifts - my son Jeremy, who's 21, obviously receives presents. My boyfriend will receive something for Chrismakkuh, since each of us celebrates both Christmas and Chanukkah. That's pretty much it.
Everyone else gets cookies.
So I start my baking early, in order to have enough to go 'round for family, friends, co-workers, neighbors, mail carriers, condo maintenance workers ... and, of course, lil' ol' me. Gotta be vigilant about quality control, right???
And shortbread cookies are just about my favorites. Whether I make simple old-fashioned treats, or stir in some candied ginger or grated citrus peel, or add cocoa to make a chocolate dough ... well, there are countless variations. Shortbread cookies freeze and defrost well, which makes them practical.
But most of all, they're just rich, buttery, crumbly, and delicious!
Samoa Shortbread
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup shortening, softened
1 egg
1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups unbleached flour
5 Girl Scouts Samoas cookies, chopped
Preheat oven to 325F. Grease a 9"x9" baking pan.
In a large bowl, cream together butter and shortening; mix in egg, sugar, salt, and vanilla extract. Stir in flour until mixture is crumbly, then press dough into prepared pan. Sprinkle chopped cookies over the top of the dough, and press in lightly.
Bake for 40 minutes, until edges of cookies are golden. Let cool completely.
Trim 1/2" from all edges, reserving the trimmings as your reward for baking. Cut the remaining block of shortbread into 4 columns, then across into 6 rows.
Makes 24 cookies.
