This recipe is from Tartine Book No. 3 by Chad Robertson of San Francisco’s Tartine Bakery. This shortbread recipe alone is a good example of his current sensibility but also make sure to read our book review. His recipes makes me think about combining ingredients – even just using ingredients – in very new ways. What’s better than a recipe that is thought provoking as well as delicious? From an artistic and creative point of view, it is also interesting to note that he took all the images as well. He is a genius. Try his take on biscotti as well with his Croquant d’Amandes.
Excerpted from Tartine Book No. 3: Modern Ancient Classic Whole, by Chad Robertson, Chronicle Books (2013). Photography by Chad Robertson.
This delicate, golden shortbread is made with whole-grain Kamut flour. Chamomile flowers, along with honey and lemon, are infused into the butter.
- 53 g/1⁄4 cup honey
- 10 g/4 T dried chamomile flowers
- 255 g/1 cup plus 2 T unsalted butter, very soft
- 255 g/1 ¾ cups whole-grain Kamut flour
- 75 g/1/2 cup plus 2 T cornstarch
- ½ t fine sea salt or kosher salt
- 110 g/1⁄2 cup sugar
- Zest of 3 lemons
- Preheat the oven to 350°F/180°C. Line a rimmed baking sheet or 6-by-10-in/15-by-25-cm glass baking dish with parchment paper.
- In a small saucepan over medium heat, warm the honey. Add the chamomile flowers in a tea strainer or satchel, remove from the heat, and let steep for 30 minutes, until cool. Remove the chamomile and discard.
- Put the butter in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (the butter must be very soft, the consistency of mayonnaise or whipped cream). Mix on medium speed until creamy.
- Sift the flour, cornstarch, and salt together into a bowl. Add 55 g/1⁄4 cup of the sugar to the butter and mix on high speed for 5 to 8 minutes until very light, fluffy, pale and doubled in volume. Add the flour mixture and mix just until a smooth dough forms, then fold in the honey and lemon zest.
- Pat the dough evenly into the prepared pan. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until the top and bottom are golden brown. Let cool on a wire rack until warm to the touch.
- Finish the shortbread by dusting the surface with the remaining sugar. Tilt the dish so that the sugar fully and evenly coats the surface, then carefully tip out any excess sugar.
- While the cookies are still warm, with a thin, sharp knife, cut the shortbread into rectangular fingers about ½ in/2.5 cm wide and 2 in/5 cm long. (If the cookies have become cold they will not slice well, so they must still be warm when you cut them.) Refrigerate the cookies for at least 1 hour before removing them from the baking dish.
- The first cookie is difficult to remove, but the rest should come out easily with the aid of a small offset spatula. The cookies will keep for up to 2 weeks in an airtight container.
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