Day 5: Vanilla Cardamom Shortbread
Recipe Type: 12 Days of Recipes (and Gift Ideas)
Serves: 9-inch square cake
*While Black Cardamom might have a few different names (Greater, Indian or Brown cardamom), it has a strong, smokey camphor-like flavour that comes from how it is dried. Unlike green cardamom, black cardamom is not usually added to sweet dishes - but for our feature shortbread recipe, it tastes great paired with vanilla paste. It is great used in meat stews and thick soups, and it is often found in Vietnamese phở. This spice would be the perfect stocking stuffer addition for the adventurous chef!
Ingredients
- 2 cups butter
- 1 cup icing sugar
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- ½ cup corn starch
- ¼ tsp sea salt
- 1 tsp ground black cardamom*
- 2 tbsp vanilla paste*
Instructions
- In a bowl combine the flour, salt, corn starch & cardamom, whisk to combine well. Set aside.
- In a bowl of a stand mixer on medium cream the butter until soft, about 2 minutes. Stop the mixer and add the powdered sugar and mix on low until combined. Add in the vanilla paste. Slowly add in the flour mixture and mix until combined. Form the dough into two sections and form each section into a ball with your hands. Flatten into a disc and wrap with plastic wrap. Chill for one hour.
- Preheat oven to 300F. Prepare baking sheets with parchment.
- On a lightly floured surface roll out on dough disc at a time to ¼” thick. Cut out with 2” diameter ( round, square or snowflake) cookie cutters and place on cookie sheets about 2” apart. Bake for 11 minutes. Do not overbake or let them brown. Let cool for a few minutes on the cookie sheets and carefully remove to a wire cooling rack to cool completely.
