Fat Scotsman

So today I tried my hand at making shortbread today, which is also my first attempt at baking in years.

Working from Maw Broon’s Cookbook: The Nation’s Favourites page 179 as a starting point, I found that I didn’t have the right ingredients, so I substituted powdered sugar for caster sugar. The flour we have has some wheat mixed in it, so these turned out more brown than golden. As we don’t have a shortbread mold I used the dinosaur cutter that we use for the boy’s sandwiches.

The theory is that they’ll try anything if it is dinosaur shaped.

Converting the weight measures in the book to volume measures (we have no scale), and halving everything for the first try, I came up with:

• 1/2 lb (two sticks) butter
• 3/4 cup powdered sugar
• 2 1/4 cups flour

Pre heat the oven to 325. Soften the butter (10 seconds in the microwave) and beat it together with the powdered sugar (we have one of those Kitched-Aid machines). Then beat in the flour. Finish up the mixing by hand. Grease the baking tin (with the paper from one of the butter sticks), and roll the mix out thick and cut into shapes and place on the baking tin. Prick all over with a fork (very important).

Maw Broon calls for 30-40 minutes “or until firm tae the touch”. We did 35 minutes which was just a little long, so we will try 30 minutes next time.

These were a great success, the gannets scoffed them all in about 5 minutes.