Monday, December 8, 2014

[Gluten-Free] Shortbread Cookies


My love for shortbread cookies started young. I'd say around 1st grade. It was the first year that I was introduced to Girl Scout Cookies... mmmm. Is there anyone who doesn't like Girl Scout Cookies? I don't think so. My Girl Scout troop was made up of almost all the girls from my class. That was back when the uniform required beanies and sock flags. Oh yes. We were hot stuff.

Besides learning the friendship songs and sharpening our serious camping skills (like eating trail mix), our main Girl Scout duty was of course, selling cookies. I was never nervous about going door to door and talking to strangers about food. Shocker. It was always so exciting when the cookie deliveries came in. Our living room would transform into the Girl Scout equivalent of Santa's workshop. There were boxes of cookies everywhere.



It was plain to see that the chocolate cookies - Samoas, Tagalongs, Thin Mints - were without a doubt the most popular. But my favorite were the Trefoils. They were the most perfect shortbread cookies you could ever imagine. And guess who ordered those? Old people. Yup, apparently I had the tastebuds of an 80-year-old woman.

When the discussion of favorite cookie would come up with my friends, they would all give me a hard time when I would express my true opinion. "Trefoils? Those are soooo boooring," they would say in reply. But that didn't bother me at all. The wonderful taste of butter, vanilla, and sugar together with just the right mix of crumbly texture and melt-in-your mouth goodness... if that was wrong, I didn't want to be right.


Since then, my love for the classic shortbread cookie has never wavered. I'll be honest, when these cookies came out of the oven for the first time, I started dancing around my kitchen island. These are seriously good. It can all be summed up by my aunt's words after I served these to my whole family yesterday. "Can these be my Christmas present this year? I want these and nothing else." :)


[Gluten-Free] Shortbread Cookies

This is exactly how I like my shortbread cookies - the delicious taste of perfectly mixed vanilla, sugar, and butter with the most amazing crumble texture. Use your favorite cookie cutter and make these for any occasion! Seriously, this recipe is a dream come true.

Makes 12 cookies

¾ cup tapioca starch, plus more for rolling
½ cup almond flour
¼ cup sorghum flour
½ teaspoon xanthan gum
1/8 teaspoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 stick butter, room temperature
1/3 cup sugar
½ teaspoon vanilla extract

In a medium bowl, whisk together tapioca starch, almond flour, sorghum flour, xanthan gum, baking powder, and salt until completely combined. Set aside.

Place butter and sugar in a standing mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Mix on low speed for 4-5 minutes or until it turns light in color and fluffy. Then, add vanilla and mix well. Turn off the mixer and add half of the dry ingredients. Mix on low speed until just combined. Then repeat with the remaining half. Sprinkle a little tapioca starch into the bottom of the same medium bowl used for the dry ingredients. Dump the dough into the bowl and form into a flat disk. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill for 1 hour.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Sprinkle the work surface with tapioca starch. Roll the dough out to 1/4-inch thick. Use a 3-inch circle cutter to cut into shapes. Gather the dough scraps and repeat. Place cutouts on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Sprinkle each cookie with a pinch of sugar. Bake for 20-22 minutes or until edges begin to brown. Keep on the baking sheet for 2 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack. 


Lauren Marie's Tips:
*Don’t get in a sticky situation! When rolling out the dough, keep the dough moving on the floured board at all times. It’ll make cutting out shapes a breeze.
*Use whatever shape or size cutter you have. Baking times will vary but just watch it. When the edges start to brown, they’re done!

2 comments:

  1. Awwww.....the Brownie beanies!! Remember how Girl Scout cookie time was always around Lent and we always gave up chocolate for Lent so we would save all the chocolate Girl Scout cookies in the freezer and open them up for Easter breakfast?? But we could always eat the Trefoils!!!......hmmmmm maybe that's how they became your favorite!

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