Cherry Almond Shortbread

I wish everyone a very happy, healthy 2013.  Hope you invent new dishes and enjoy eating them as well.

Shortbread cookies are Scottish in origin.  These rich, tender and crumbly cookies were once served on Christmas and New Year’s Eve.  Once you have made the basic dough of butter, vanilla, white flour and sugar you may experiment by adding varied ingredients like fruits, chocolate chips or nuts.

I added almonds and cherries which were sitting in my refrigerator.  I was pleased with the result as small speckles of cherry shine through the baked shortbread wedges, thus adding beauty to yummy cookies.

  

Ingredients:

½ cup sugar, 1 cup butter at room temperature, 2 tbsp cooking oil, 2 ½  cups white flour, 1 tsp vanilla essence, 1 tsp ground cardamom,  ½ cup peeled and chopped almonds, ½ cup chopped cherries (frozen or preserved)

For Glaze:

1 tbsp powered sugar, 1 ½ tbsp milk

Method:

Heat oven to 350 degree F (200 degree C).

Grease two 9 inches pie pans.

In large bowl, cream together sugar, butter and cooking oil with an electric beater.

Blend white flour, cardamom powder and vanilla essence into the creamed mixture with a spatula.

Mix cherry and almond bits with the dough very well.

Dough will be crumbly.  Divide the dough into two parts.

Press in the bottom of greased pans.

Bake for 30 minutes or until golden brown.

Cool 10 minutes.  Cut shortbread into 15 wedges while warm.

Combine glaze ingredients and drizzle over cool wedges of shortbread.