Shortbread Fingers
Butter, sugar and flour pressed into a tin and cooked for 25 minutes into crumbly, golden shortbread fingers. Sixteen servings in 40 minutes.
Don't Make These Mistakes
Handle the dough as little as possible.
Prick the surface.
If your oven runs hot, check at 20 minutes.
Cut it while still hot.
Making Shortbread Fingers
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Heat the oven to 160°C / 320°F and line a 20 cm square tin. Rub the butter into the flour, sugar and salt until crumbly, then press together into a dough.
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Press the dough into the tin and prick all over with a fork.
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Cook for 25 minutes until pale gold. Cut into 16 fingers while hot, sprinkle with the sugar and cool in the tin.
What's Going On Here
Shortbread is the proof that three ingredients can be enough. Butter does everything: it gives flavour, it makes the texture crumble, and it is the reason these keep so well.
Use good butter, softened but not oily, and rub it into the flour and sugar with your fingertips until it looks like damp sand. Then press it together gently into a dough. Handle it as little as you can, since warm hands melt the butter and make the dough greasy.
Press into a lined tin and prick all over with a fork. The holes let steam escape and stop the surface from puffing.
Cook at 160°C for 25 minutes. It should be pale gold, not brown. If your oven runs hot, check at 20 minutes. Cut into fingers while hot, then leave to cool in the tin. If you wait until cold it shatters. Rice flour or cornflour swapped for a quarter of the flour gives an even sandier bite.
Leftovers, Reheating and Keeping
Keeps in an airtight tin for up to 1 week.
Serving Shortbread Fingers
- Pot of tea
- Coffee
- Fresh strawberries
- Whipped cream
Common Questions About Shortbread Fingers
How long does Shortbread Fingers take to make?
About 40 minutes in total — 15 minutes of preparation and 25 minutes of cooking. The recipe serves 16.
What are the key tips for making Shortbread Fingers?
Handle the dough as little as possible. Prick the surface. If your oven runs hot, check at 20 minutes. Cut it while still hot.
What should I serve with Shortbread Fingers?
Pot of tea; Coffee; Fresh strawberries; Whipped cream.
How should Shortbread Fingers be stored?
Keeps in an airtight tin for up to 1 week.
Is Shortbread Fingers suitable for a special diet?
This recipe is vegetarian, low-carb and keto. Those labels are checked against the ingredient list, so a dish is only marked when nothing in it contradicts the claim.
What's in a Serving
Per serving, calculated from the ingredient list. Treat these as an estimate — brands and cuts vary.
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Written and tested by Turab
One person, one kitchen — no test kitchen, no team. How every recipe on this site is checked before it goes up.
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