This is the best minty, candy cane shortbread recipe

Shortbread is usually associated with the Christmas holiday season. And so are candy canes. Put them both together and what do you get? Christmas-y yumminess! ( I have no idea if Christmas-y or yumminess are the best words for SEO but whether they rank high on Google’s keywords or not, they are the best words to describe this shortbread variation!) This was another variation suggested by my fellow kitchen experimenter. The crunchy and minty taste of the candy canes compliments the smooth, creamy, buttery sweetness of the classic shortbread in this candy cane shortbread recipe.

Ingredients

1 c flour
1/2 c icing sugar
1/2 c cornstarch
3/4 c butter
1/4-1/2 c crushed candy canes

Directions

Cream together first four ingredients.
Mix in crushed candy canes.
Roll out into 1 inch balls.
Flatten with a fork onto a cookie sheet.
Chill in fridge for 30-60 minutes.
Heat oven to 300F.
Bake for 15-20 minutes or until edges and bottom are golden brown.

Notes:

Again, I’m not a cook and I’m sure there are many techniques to baking that would make the above recipes tastier. In any case, I hope you enjoy the recipe and the results.

Some variations on the classic shortbread recipe involve adding in extra liquid. With those recipes I find you get a shortbread that spreads out more than usual. If you don’t want this then I suggest reducing the amount of butter a bit or increasing the dry ingredients a bit.

For the savory shortbreads I would suggest limiting the sugar content. I will keep working on the ratio of sweet to savory for those but the do smell wonderful when you take them out of the oven!

Tea Pairings:

Good question. Honestly, I think shortbread goes with anything! And tea goes with anything too! So, it’s a match made in heaven. I have tried different teas with each of the shortbread varieties with no particular pairing methodology behind the pairing. Each tea I have used can stand on its own.

Modifications:

The modifications on this candy cane shortbread are endless. For this particular variation I would suggest trying any crushed peppermint candy; or crushed skittles; or any crushed hard candy for example any of the Life Saver flavours would make for an interesting variation.

Once I have gone through the 12 days of shortbread I will include a list of recipes of shortbread variations for the future such as caramel, toffee, skor, sea salt, white chocolate macadamian nut, carrot cake, pumpkin spice, cranberry and pistachio. I’m also considering more savory variations using other types of cheese like brie, havarti, smoked cheeses, maybe even some cream cheeses.

References:

17 Incredibly Perfect Tea and Biscuit Combinations, Emma Cooke, March 2016, buzzfeed.com, URL: https://www.buzzfeed.com/emmacooke24/digestives-and-breakfast-tea-is-life
The best tea and biscuit pairings, Niamh Ollerton, Nov 2016, lovefood.com, URL: https://www.lovefood.com/news/56428/tea-biscuit-pairings-breakfast-tea-chocolate-hobnob-earl-grey-ginger-nut

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Lani and Norm

I enjoy learning and sharing that knowledge.Sharing has been in many forms over the years, as a teaching assistant, university lecturer, Pilates instructor, math tutor and just sharing with friends and family.Throughout, summarizing what I have learnt in words has always been there and continues to through blog posts, articles, video and the ever growing forms of content out there!