This is the best minty, candy cane shortbread recipe (2024)

Estimated read time 3 min read

Shortbread is usually associated with the Christmas holiday season. And so are candy canes. Put them both together and what do you get? Christmas-y yumminess! ( I have no idea if Christmas-y or yumminess are the best words for SEO but whether they rank high on Google’s keywords or not, they are the best words to describe this shortbread variation!) This was another variation suggested by my fellow kitchen experimenter. The crunchy and minty taste of the candy canes compliments the smooth, creamy, buttery sweetness of the classic shortbread in this candy cane shortbread recipe.

Notes:

Again, I’m not a cook and I’m sure there are many techniques to baking that would make the above recipes tastier. In any case, I hope you enjoy the recipe and the results.

Some variations on the classicshortbread recipe involve adding in extra liquid. With those recipes I find you get ashortbread that spreads out more than usual.If you don’t want this then I suggest reducing the amount of butter abit or increasing the dry ingredients a bit.

For the savory shortbreads I would suggest limiting the sugar content. I will keep working on the ratio of sweet to savory for those but the do smell wonderful when you take them out of the oven!

Tea Pairings:

Good question. Honestly, I think shortbread goes with anything! And tea goes with anything too! So, it’s a match made in heaven. I have tried different teas with each of the shortbread varieties with no particular pairing methodology behind the pairing. Each tea I have used can stand on its own.

Modifications:

The modifications on this candy cane shortbread are endless. For this particular variation I would suggest trying any crushed peppermint candy; or crushed skittles; or any crushed hard candy for example any of the Life Saver flavours would make for an interesting variation.

Once I have gone through the 12 days of shortbread I will include a list of recipes of shortbread variations for the future such as caramel, toffee, skor, sea salt, white chocolate macadamian nut, carrot cake, pumpkin spice, cranberry and pistachio. I’m also considering more savory variations using other types of cheese like brie, havarti, smoked cheeses, maybe even some cream cheeses.

References:

1. 17 Incredibly Perfect Tea and BiscuitCombinations, Emma Cooke, March 2016, buzzfeed.com, URL: https://www.buzzfeed.com/emmacooke24/digestives-and-breakfast-tea-is-life
2. The best tea and biscuit pairings, NiamhOllerton, Nov 2016, lovefood.com, URL: https://www.lovefood.com/news/56428/tea-biscuit-pairings-breakfast-tea-chocolate-hobnob-earl-grey-ginger-nut

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