My parents prefer my shortbread to my Nan’s – they’re a bit odd really but they are getting on a bit so I guess that might account for it.  Anyway, having shared the secrets of the best ever shortbread, here is my shortbread recipe.  I think they like the citrus in this but also the thinner slightly darker biscuits. You’ll see that they are very much based on my Nan’s shortbread though.

I tend not to eat this as biscuits – I prefer to use the shortbread dough as pastry for my Christmas mince pies and for that, this is perfect.  It was an idea I got from a Sainsbury’s magazine which suggested using your favourite shortbread recipe instead of pastry.  

Ingredients

225g butter (must be room temperature)

85g icing sugar

250g plain flour

85g corn flour

2 tsp vanilla extract

Zest of half a lemon and half an orange

2 tsp orange juice

Method

• Line a couple of baking trays with parchment and preheat the oven to 180C
• Cream the butter, sugar, vanilla, orange juice and zest together until light and fluffy
• Whisk in the flours until it forms a dough
• Roll the dough into a firm sausage, about 2 inches in diameter then roll in clingfilm and let it firm in the fridge for at least an hour (you can freeze at this point too)
• Once the dough is firm, using a sharp thin knife cut half centimetre slices and arrange on the baking trays (they don’t spread very much)
• Bake for about 15 minutes when the outsides will begin to darken slightly
• Cool on racks then store in an airtight container.  These should last for over a week (yeah right – in my dreams!)