When winter comes and the days get shorter and cooler, we like to take refuge in the warmth of our own homes. And to turn up the heat a little more, we turn on the oven and bake up some Christmas shortbread!
Ingredients for fifty shortbread cookies
- 300g flour
- 150g cane sugar
- 1 sachet vanilla sugar
- A little lemon zest
- 2 eggs
- 150g soft butter
- 1 heaped teaspoon cinnamon powder
- 1 pinch salt
- Christmas cookie cutters
Ingredients for icing
- 200 g powdered sugar
- 1 egg white
- Lemon juice (zest removed)
- Red and green food coloring
Steps to follow
- Remove the butter from the fridge at least one hour before preparing the recipe. Start by sifting the flour into a bowl and mixing with the cane sugar, cinnamon, vanilla sugar, lemon zest and pinch of salt. Add the butter, cut into small cubes, and mix with your fingers until you obtain a sandy dough.
- Using an electric mixer, beat the two eggs until frothy. Make a well in the sandy dough, add the eggs and knead by hand until the dough becomes homogeneous. Once done, cover the dough with cling film and place in the fridge for 1 hour.
- After an hour, preheat your oven to 180º (th. 6). Remove the dough from the fridge and roll out on a floured work surface. Use your cookie cutters to shape the shortbread and place them carefully on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake for around ten minutes, until the edges begin to brown.
- While your batches are baking, start preparing the icing for your shortbread. Use several small bowls to obtain the red and green colors. Still using an electric mixer, mix the egg white with the powdered sugar until thick and smooth. Divide the mixture into 3 bowls and mix in your food coloring. Once your shortbread has cooled, you can start decorating it!
Enjoy your Christmas shortbread!
👩🍳 Secret Brussels tip: prepare this recipe while listening to a good Christmas playlist to get you in the mood!
📱 Share the results of this recipe with us on Bruxelles Secrète!