No-Fail Box-Grater Shortbread
TASTIER
VEGETARIAN
Makes 18 bar cookies
Shortbread dough can be a pain to roll out. And while rolling it out, it can take on too much flour, rendering the cookies tough. This shortcut lets you skip the rolling by grating cold dough directly into the baking pan. The shreds will melt to the right consistency and morph into irresistible cookies.
4 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon table salt
2 cups (4 sticks or 1 pound) unsalted butter, at room temperature, plus more for the baking dish
2 cups granulated white sugar
4 large egg yolks, at room temperature
Confectioners’ sugar, for garnishing
1. Whisk the flour, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl until uniform.
2. Using a stand mixer with the paddle attachment or a handheld mixer, cream the butter and granulated sugar in a second large bowl at medium speed until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes. Beat in the egg yolks one at a time, then turn off the machine. Scrape down the inside of the bowl, then continue beating until smooth.
3. Scrape down and remove the beaters. Using a wooden spoon, stir in the flour mixture until a dough forms. Gather the dough into a ball, seal in plastic wrap, and freeze for 1 hour.
4. Meanwhile, position the rack in the center of the oven; heat the oven to 350°F. Lightly butter the inside of a metal or ceramic 9 x 13-inch baking pan.
5. Grate the semi-frozen ball of dough into the pan through the large holes of a box grater. Gently pat the shreds down so they evenly fill the pan without compacting or compressing them.
6. Bake until brown and set to the touch, about 40 minutes. Cool in the pan on a wire rack to room temperature, about 1 hour. Cut into small squares and dust these with confectioners’ sugar to serve.
Voilà! Want more easy baking with a box grater? Instead of cutting butter into flour for a pie crust, grate very cold butter into the flour using the large holes of a box grater. Continue on with the recipe as stated, simply stirring it together with cold water.