Dan Leader’s Lemon ShortBread Cookies
This holiday season, our founder Dan Leader is sharing one of his favorite cookie recipes from his new cookbook:
A Slow Rise.
“If I have a go-to cookie, it’s shortbread. I love its slightly grainy, melt-in-your-mouth texture. I love how simple it is to make. And I love how flexible it is.” - Dan Leader
Lemon Shortbread
Makes twenty 2-inch (5 cm) squares
Start to finish: about 4 hours
Gathering ingredients and preparing the dough: 30 minutes
Shaping and refrigerating: at least 2 hours but up to overnight
Baking: about 25 minutes
Cooling and glazing: 1 hour
For a bit more lemon flavor and an additional decorative touch, add slices of dried lemon. Very thinly slice 1 to 2 lemons and carefully remove any seeds. Lay on a baking sheet lined with a silicone baking mat and then lay another baking mat on top (to keep the slices from curling). Dry in a very low oven (200°F/90°C) until completely dried, 6 to 8 hours. Alternatively, the slices can be dried in a dehydrator, but they should also be weighted slightly to keep from curling.
Ingredients | Metric Weight | Imperial |
---|---|---|
SHORTBREAD | ||
unsalted butter, at room temp. | 226g | 8 oz. / 16 tbsp |
fine sea salt | 3g | .5 tsp |
powdered sugar out in | 75g | .5 cup + 2.5 tbsp |
lemon zest, finely grated | 5g | 1 tbsp |
GLAZE | ||
powdered sugar | 85g | 3/4 cup |
whole milk | 20g | 1 tbsp + 1 tsp |
lemon zest, finely grated | 4g | 2 tsp |
lemon juice, freshly squeezed | 3g | .5 tsp |
Dried Lemon Slices, optional (see note) |
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment weigh the butter, salt, powdered sugar, and lemon zest for the shortbread. Mix on the stir setting for about 15 seconds to begin to incorporate the sugar. Increase the speed to low and continue to mix, stopping to scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl once, just until the mixture comes together, about 1 minute more.
Weigh together the flours and add to the bowl along with the lemon juice. Mix on the stir setting for about 15 seconds to begin to incorporate. Increase the speed to low and continue to mix, stopping to scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl once (particularly the bottom for any dry that may have settled there), until the mixture comes together, about 2 minutes more.
Mound the dough on the work surface and with a pastry skyscraper or the heel of your hand, push it together to form an 8- by 10-inch (20- by 24-inch) rectangle. Transfer to the lined baking sheet. Cover the top and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or up to overnight.
Position the oven racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven. Preheat the oven to 325˚F (160˚C).
Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
Using a chef’s knife, cut the rectangle into twenty 2-inch (5 cm) squares (5 across and 4 down if a long end of the dough is positioned in front of you). Arrange 10 on each baking sheet and transfer to the oven. Bake, rotating the baking sheets once, until the shortbread are golden brown, about 25 minutes.
Transfer the shortbread on the baking sheets to cooling racks and let cool for 15 minutes. After that they can be moved to the racks to cool completely.
Meanwhile, prepare the glaze.Using a small whisk or a spatula, combine all of the glaze ingredients in a small bowl.
Give the glaze a stir and using a small spatula, spread on top of the shortbread, returning them to the cooling rack for about 10 minutes for the glaze to set.