Try Something New Tuesday # 6

Christmas Shortbread Baubles.

Welcome to another Try Something New Tuesday and with Christmas only been three weeks away I've been busy making cookies for the kid's to hand out with their Christmas cards instead of doing candy canes like all the other children. For Caelan's class I decided to make shortbread shaped baubles which I then decorate using Christmas sprinkles. I used a recipe from my old high school textbook 'day to day cookery' and I love this recipe because its easy, the kids love it and I think that this one is deliciously buttery and if you use festive cookie cutters you can create a merry Christmas with every bit.

So I hope that you have as much success with this recipe as I've had. Now in the past I've made a gluten free version at Christmas because otherwise I wouldn't be able to eat them, to do this I replace the required plain flour with my gluten free all-purpose plain flour and I'm still able to create beautiful shortbread without having to modify the recipe too drastically. So without further ado here is my go to recipe.

Shortbread
Ingredients:
100g butter, softened
50g or ¼ cup caster sugar
200g or 1¼ cups plain flour

Directions:
1. Pre-heat oven to 150°C and lightly grease a baking tray.
2. Cream butter and sugar together until it looks white.
3. Add sifted flour to form a stiff dough.
4. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface, knead until its ready to roll out.
5. Roll the dough on the floured surface to approximately 2cm thickness. Using a cookie cutter cut out your cookies, if it becomes a little difficult to cut the shapes flour your cookie cutter for better cuts.
6. Place onto your greased baking tray, leaving a 5 cm space between each cookie.
7. Bake in a slow oven for approximately 40 - 45 minutes or until they are a faint golden colour.
8. Allow the cookies to cool completely before you decorate them.

How I decorated my Christmas Shortbread Baubles:
I used an icing pen and Christmas coloured sprinkles to decorate. I placed lines across the biscuit to create a wave effect and to create different sections just like you might see on a Christmas bauble.

 Next I placed the Christmas coloured sprinkles in a bowl so that I could gain easy access.

Once you have the sprinkles were you want them tap the biscuit lightly so that the excess sprinkles fall off. Place the decorated biscuit bake onto the cooling tray to allow the icing to harden. Alternatively you can sprinkle caster sugar or icing sugar over the top of each cookie. If using caster sugar lightly dampen the top of the cookie and then dust it with the caster sugar.

As these lovely little cookies were been given as gifts I placed each cookie into a small plastic bag and then I wrapped a small piece of curling ribbon around the bag, tired a bow and set it aside for Caelan to hand out the following day. After making and decorating your shortbread, store them in an air tight container and place them in a cool area of your cupboard or pantry. I hope that you have fun making, decorating and eating these deliciously buttery shortbread cookies.

Megan