Skip to main content

Something Good—Shortbread Cookies

The other day, Husband and I were walking to our car parked in a parking lot, and a group of young women passed us on their way into a store. One of them suggested they have dinner while they're in town (it's a place with lots of restaurants), and what should they get, she asked? One of her friends said, "Something good." That's the kind of comment that deserves a smack, as far as I'm concerned. Something good? Something good?! How is the driver or the cook or the person generally in charge of food supposed to work with "something good?"

Well, here's something good—lemon-lime basil shortbread cookies. I found the recipe in the July edition of Bon Appétit and set it aside to try. I kept forgetting I had dog-eared the page, but this afternoon, I finally got to make the cookies. The thing is, when I was shopping with this recipe in mind, I forgot I would need lemons and only bought limes. No worries. I just doubled up on the lime zest and used lime juice instead of lemon. They're wonderful. Really wonderful. They are something good.

Lemon-Lime Basil Shortbread Cookies

1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup powdered sugar plus more for pressing cookies
1/2 cup (1 stick) chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/2" cubes
2 tablespoons sliced fresh basil leaves
1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest (or the zest of one lime)
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon finely grated lime zest
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
Sanding sugar (optional)

Preheat oven to 375°F. Place flour, 1/2 cup powdered sugar, butter, basil, both zests, lemon juice, and salt in a food processor. Pulse until large, moist clumps form. Measure level tablespoonfuls of dough; roll between your palms to form balls. Place on a large baking sheet, spacing 2" apart. Lightly dust the bottom of a flat measuring cup with powdered sugar and press cookies into 2" rounds, dusting cup bottom with powdered sugar as needed to prevent sticking. Sprinkle tops of cookies with sanding sugar, if using.

Bake until edges are brown, about 20 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack; let cool.

NOTE: The cookies I made were a little smaller than suggested and weren't quite 2 inches, so I baked them for 15 minutes, and they were pretty brown around the edges, as you can see in the photo. If you prefer shortbreads to be pale, keep an eye on the oven. 20 minutes is a long time for little cookies.

Comments

dive said…
My oh my, Robyn, those look truly scrumptious!
6:11 AM
Alifan said…
I second that. yummy...
9:45 AM
dive said…
Aha! A comment from someone who bakes so much better than me!
Er … Mum, is there any chance you can knock up a batch of these? Rip the basil rather than slice it but otherwise keep it just as Robyn's yummy recipe.
10:19 AM
Robyn Martins said…
Beryl, don't listen to him. Cut the basil because it's going to get chopped to bits in the food processor anyway.
10:20 AM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Long Live Anita Bowser

You know I occasionally check my hometown newspaper's website to scan the obituaries (morbid, I know, but I'm at that age). Over this past weekend, I read the obituary of Indiana State Senator Anita Bowser . She was a noted Democrat who championed causes protecting the neediest in the state's population. She was respected on both sides of the aisle for her intelligence and plain and outspoken approach to law making. The picture on her senate page is lovely. I remember none of those things about Anita Bowser . My first year or so in college was spent at a branch of Purdue University, and in the early 80s, Anita was a political science professor. She taught my American Government class my freshman year, and she was a mess. Somewhere in my old text book, I have a sketch of her drawn on a particularly dull day in class--her hose sagged at her ankles, her slip showed at least half an inch all the way around, her hair had been slept on but not brushed, and her bright red lip stic...
18 comments
Read more

My Sitemeter is All Bloated and Not Quite Itself

I'm tempted to let it sit on the couch with its feet curled up under a blanket, a hot cup of coffee in hand, a block of cherry almond bark Chocolove within reach, and An Affair to Remember spinning in the DVD player. I'm one of those obsessive bloggers, the kind who checks her sitemeter as often as possible throughout the day, the kind who gauges the quality of her writing by the number of readers who regularly stop by. I've become less interested in the overall number of hits and more interested in the number of repeat hits. The return visitors are the ones I long for. When my sitemeter reads forty at the end of the day, and the majority of those hits are webpals who have conversed, I'm happy. Forty may seem low to many of you, but I've only been at this since August. To me, forty is a jackpot. A few days ago, I sat down at my laptop and discovered a number somewhere in the eighties. Eighties! Yippee! Yeeha ! Hoo-rah ! I've been discovered by the webworld , o...
18 comments
Read more

Happy Birthday...

to me! Update: Since you have asked, I only got one actual packaged gift, a beautiful hand-made bracelet from a friend, but both girls were home for the weekend, and we had dinner at the lake and a relaxing weekend. Thanks to all of you for your lovely wishes!
20 comments
Read more