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This 5-ingredient brown butter shortbread recipe is straightforward to make and splendidly wealthy and scrumptious.
These brown butter shortbread bars are downright swoon-worthy. ♡
Critically. I’ve baked up a report quantity of shortbread throughout this season of Ted Lasso, impressed by his well-known biscuits that he offers to Rebecca week after week. And after enjoying round with varied takes on basic shortbread recipes, and getting a lot of suggestions from buddies who’ve been more than pleased to style take a look at, we’ve lastly settled on a profitable recipe that I’m sure can be Ted-approved.
Like most basic shortbread recipes, this one options the 4 normal elements — butter, flour, sugar and salt. However I’ve amped issues up by browning the butter, which provides an irresistibly nutty, toasty and wealthy notes to the shortbread. I’ve additionally added a touch of vanilla to the batter, which rounds out the flavors and brings all the things collectively properly. Then I’m completely going to insist that you simply sprinkle a little bit of flaky sea salt on prime to complete — the salty-sweet combo is works so effectively right here and actually makes the brown buttery flavors sing!
Similar to Ted, I’m satisfied that these shortbread bars (or “biscuits” as they’d say within the UK) are greatest for sharing. So I hope you’ll bake up a fast batch to share with these you’re keen on and revel in, get pleasure from!
Brown Butter Shortbread Substances
Listed here are a couple of transient notes concerning the brown butter shortbread elements you’ll need to make your personal “Ted Lasso biscuits”:
- Unsalted butter: I wrote this recipe utilizing unsalted butter. However in the event you occur to solely have salted butter available, no downside, simply scale back the quantity of superb sea salt within the recipe to 1/4 teaspoon (as a substitute of three/4 teaspoon). We’ll brown the butter so as to add some further wealthy and toasty taste, then add 2 tablespoons of water again to the butter to interchange a number of the liquid that evaporated through the browning course of.
- All-purpose flour: We’re going with basic all-purpose flour in these bars, which is historically used to make shortbread. Additionally, please observe that 1 cup = 142 g flour in my recipes, and all the time suggest weighing the flour with a kitchen scale when you have one.
- Powdered sugar: Likewise, I additionally suggest weighing the powdered sugar to make sure that you might have the right amount.
- Vanilla extract: A contact of vanilla pairs so superbly right here with the toasty brown butter taste.
- Salt: + flaky sea salt: Lastly, we are going to use superb sea salt within the bars themselves. Then I additionally extremely suggest sprinkling the baked bars with a touch of flaky sea salt to complete. The candy + salt mixture right here is downright irresistible.
How To Make Shortbread Bars
Detailed directions are included within the full recipe field beneath, however listed below are a couple of further suggestions to assist with every step:
- Brown the butter. I like to recommend doing this step a couple of hours earlier than you intend to bake the shortbread in order that the brown butter can have time to relax and harden once more. (Chilling the brown butter is non-compulsory, however it should give the bars a a lot better texture as soon as baked.) To relax the butter quicker, I like to recommend inserting it in a big shallow bowl or baking dish.
- Combine the dough. It’s best to do that step with both a hand mixer or a stand mixer, since we’ll have to cream the brown butter and sugars collectively. When you’ve added within the salt, vanilla and further water, take care to only briefly combine the batter till mixed. We don’t need to overmix it.
- Press dough into pan. We’ll press the batter evenly right into a parchment-lined baking pan after which use a toothpick (or a fork) to briefly poke holes all around the dough.
- Bake. The shortbread will bake for about 50 to 55 minutes or till it’s golden brown and evenly agency to the contact. Switch the pan to a wire rack to chill for 20 minutes, after which rigorously raise up the parchment and switch the big bar to a reducing board. At this level, you may slice the shortbread into your required measurement/form of bars and sprinkle with flaky sea salt.
Shortbread FAQs
A couple of fast shortbread questions:
- How do these evaluate to the precise Ted Lasso biscuits? Nicely, hopefully a lot better than the originals, at the least based on this famous interview with Hannah Waddingham! 😉
- What’s the distinction between shortbread biscuits and cookies? No distinction. Within the UK, these can be known as shortbread “biscuits”, whereas within the States, they’re extra generally referred to as shortbread “cookies” or “bars.”
- Do you could let the brown butter chill? I actually suggest it to offer the shortbread optimum texture. When you’re in a rush although, you may go forward and blend the batter whereas the brown butter remains to be sizzling, however simply know that the shortbread will likely be way more dense and won’t rise effectively. The bars will nonetheless style nice although.
- When is one of the best time to chop the bars? I experimented with quite a few strategies of reducing the bars earlier than, throughout, shortly after, and awhile after baking, and located that I persistently had one of the best success reducing them about 20 minutes after baking whereas the bars had been nonetheless heat. They all the time sliced very cleanly and evenly!
- What if the poked holes shut up whereas baking? No downside — they might shut up! We poke the holes initially to assist the biscuits rise whereas baking. However I’ve discovered that when utilizing butter, they typically shut up whereas baking.
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Description
This 5-ingredient brown butter shortbread recipe is straightforward to make and splendidly wealthy and scrumptious.
- 1 cup (227g) unsalted butter (plus 2 tablespoons water)
- 1 cup (120g) powdered sugar
- 3/4 teaspoon superb sea salt
- 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 cups (184g) all-purpose flour
- flaky sea salt
- Brown the butter. Soften the butter within the giant sauté pan over medium-high warmth. Proceed cooking till the butter begins to foam, stirring ceaselessly to make sure that the butter cooks evenly. As soon as the butter solids start to show golden brown and the butter smells toasty, instantly pour it right into a heat-safe bowl. (Maintain a really shut eye on the butter whereas it’s browning in order that it doesn’t burn, since it could go from golden to burned in a short time.) Refrigerate the butter for 1 hour or till it solidifies right into a delicate consistency, much like mayonnaise.
- Prep the oven and baking pan. Warmth oven to 300°F. Line a 8×8-inch baking pan with parchment paper.
- Combine the dough. Switch the chilled butter to the bowl of a stand mixer and add the powdered sugar. Utilizing the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar collectively on medium-high velocity for two minutes or till pale and creamy. Add within the salt, vanilla extract, 2 tablespoons of water, and beat briefly till mixed. Add the flour and beat till simply mixed (don’t overmix).
- Press dough into pan. Press the dough as evenly as doable into the ready baking pan. Use a toothpick or a fork to poke holes all around the dough about 1 inch aside.
- Bake. Bake for 50 to 55 minutes or till golden brown and evenly agency to the contact. Switch the pan to a wire rack to chill for 20 minutes. Then rigorously raise up the parchment and switch the big bar to a reducing board. Slice into your required measurement of bars and sprinkle with flaky sea salt.
- Serve. Serve and revel in!
Notes
Prep time: Please observe that the prep time listed doesn’t embody the time wanted to relax the butter, which typically takes between 1-2 hours.