Coffee Shortbread | Baking with Dorie

Coffee shortbread has a distinct coffee flavor that you can’t miss. Less obvious is the subtle flavor of lemon zest and cardamon. Together, these shortbread cookies have an alluring flavor which makes you come back for more. Twelve cookies from the recipe are barely enough for everyone. They go fast!

The dough is pressed into a 8-inch round cake pan and cut into 12 wedges using the tines of a fork. First, you have to mark the wedges. Re-prick the wedge lines after baking to ensure that the cookies can be separated into individual ones. If you ask me, I find this method a little fussy.

This bake reminds me of the shortbread crust, or the sweet tart dough (p.348 in Baking with Dorie). You can easily put all the dry ingredients in the food processor for a few pulses. Cut the butter into the mix, and work in a few long pulses. The dough should start to clump and holds together when pinched. Stop before the dough balls up. Finally, press the dough, or knit the crumbs together, into the bottom of a pan to form a crust or a huge cookie.

For one stick of butter (4 oz, 113 g), you need the following. Dry ingredients: sugar (1/2 cup, 67g), lemon zest, instant espresso (1 tsp), ground cardamom (1/2 tsp), all purpose flour (1 cup 2 tbsp, 151g) and a sprinkle of sea salt.

As long as you maintain the butter-flour ratio (one stick of butter for every cup of flour), you are free to play around. Scale up or down. Egg as a binder, or not. Or use any spices, flavorings of your choice.

I like the ease of the pressed dough, the tantalizing flavor and the crisp-tender snap of the cookie that melts in your mouth. Who wouldn’t want a delightfully caffeinated cookie that’s buttery, tender, and boldly flavored? They are perfect for the afternoon tea or coffee break.