Lemon Cardamom Shortbread with White Chocolate

Here’s another Christmas cookie recipe, as promised. My mom only asks for one thing from me at Christmas, and that’s a batch of shortbread cookies. Since shortbread is my yearly baking gift to her, I try to put a creative twist on my basic recipe, to keep things tantalizing.

This year I’ve added lemon zest and a generous amount of cardamom to the dough and decorated them with a dip of white chocolate. (She does not like what I call “real” chocolate, and while this makes me question my parentage, as a loving daughter I must honour her puzzling taste buds. )

Wow, did these cookies ever give off a lovely lemony aroma when they came out of the oven!  If you are a big fan of lemon-flavoured treats, I would even try doubling the amount of zest. I think I’ll try that myself next time.

And don’t worry, I haven’t ruined the surprise! Mom doesn’t read my blog, but she has mastered texting this year and actually has a rather hilarious emoji addiction, so no complaints. ;-)

I’m in so much trouble is she ever reads this…

 

Tomorrow I’ll be posting my last recipe of the year!

 

Thanks so much for stopping by,

A :-)

Mom’s Lemon Cardamom Shortbread with White Chocolate

Makes about 40 cookies

Ingredients:

-1 cup butter, cubed

-3 Tbsp cornstarch

-1/2 cup icing sugar

-1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

-zest of one organic lemon

-2 tsp ground cardamom

Decorations:

-white chocolate chips

-red sprinkles

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.

2. Using a stand mixer, beat butter until fluffy. (A couple of minutes.)

3. Lower the speed of the mixer, and add the cornstarch, one tablespoon at a time. Add the icing sugar 1/4 cup at a time. Add the flour 1/4 cup at a time. Mix until the dough comes together.

4. Line the counter with plastic wrap or parchment. Place the ball of dough onto the plastic wrap and mold into a slender log. You can divide the dough in two and make two logs, if you prefer. Place in the fridge to chill for 1 hour.

5. Slice 1/4 inch thick discs and place onto baking sheet.

6. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until the edges and bottoms of the cookies are golden.

7. Let cool for 10 minutes on the baking sheet and then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

8. Using a double boiler, melt white chocolate. Dip half of each cookie into the white chocolate and place on parchment. Decorate with sprinkles and leave to set. Enjoy!