For Beautifully Browned Shortbread, Bake It Twice

Shortbread cookies are some of the simplest cookies on the planet. The basic ingredients are butter, sugar, and flour. That's it. It's remarkable that something so plain can be so delicious. But there's just something about the tender, crisp, flaky texture and sweet, toasty flavor that is irresistible. 

Many cultures have versions of shortbread cookies. Shortbread itself originated in Scotland, according to Historic U.K. Mexican wedding cakes are shortbread, just formed into balls instead of discs. Linzer cookies are shortbread sandwiched with jam. Sugar cookies are shortbread. Okinawan salted shortbread from Japan and alfajores from South America are two more versions, per SBS.

And there are so many ways to make shortbread cookies a bit different. You can use different types of flour, different sugars, and even different fats. You can add nuts, or dried fruits, or chocolate. But there's one simple way to make the most basic shortbread much more delicious: baking the cookies twice. If you're thinking, "Won't that make them hard and dry?" the answer is no — here's why.

Twice-baked shortbread is really just baked a bit longer; the cookies aren't dry, just toasted. This method has the effect of browning the butter in the cookies and caramelizing the sugars. That creates new compounds for a rich flavor.

The idea for baking shortbread cookies twice comes from Alice Medrich's book "Pure Dessert," which Publishers Weekly calls "elaborate simplicity." Her recipes celebrate the perfection of ordinary ingredients, such as the many different types of vanilla.

According to Smitten Kitchen, Medrich employs two more tactics to make these fabulous cookies. The butter is melted, not just softened, and the dough rests in its pan for a couple of hours before it's baked. That step allows the sugar to dissolve in the dough and the flour to hydrate for better texture. The shortbread is baked for the first time, then cooled and cut and baked again until toasty.

Whether you make your shortbread in a pan or cut-out shapes, this baking trick will elevate them into another realm. You can use this method whether you're making cookies or using the shortbread as a crust, adding everything from caramel to melted chocolate to fruit.

Just be sure to watch the shortbread when it's in the oven for a second time. There's one mistake in the kitchen that can't be fixed: burning something. Let your nose be your guide, and pull the cookies out when they look and smell toasty.

Try your hand at twice-baked shortbread in these recipes: shortbread cookies made with raw cane sugar, classic shortbread cookies made with brown sugar for a rich, caramel flavor, and strawberry vanilla shortbread cookies made with dried strawberries. You can even add tea to your shortbread cookies for an all-in-one afternoon snack: Earl Grey tea shortbread sugar cookies.