The Best 3 Ingredient Shortbread - The Lazy Low FODMAP

Shortbread is a really great snack to serve at a birthday, at a tea or just to have around. It is a well known sweet treat which is super simple to make and comes in a variety of different shapes and sizes. Shortbread can also be flavoured with various other ingredients, but I love to keep it simple, just using the core ingredients; flour, sugar and butter. It is super easy to make original shortbread recipes low FODMAP by just making a few substitutions. With a few adjustments to ingredient ratios, shortbread is one of the most simple desserts to bake.

Whilst many recipes may recommend that you just mix all your ingredients together from the start, I like to cream my butter and sugar separately first. This way, you ensure that there are no sugar granules in your shortbread batter, and you have a smoother consistency. It also minimised the likelihood of butter or flour pockets, because you are combining them more thoroughly individually. By taking this extra step, you are likely to come out with a better shortbread, with a more consistent texture. Additionally, it helps to break apart the butter before adding in the flour- it just makes it easier to combine everything!

Ideas to incorporate into your shortbread:

A bit of orange juice or orange extract, to brighten the flavour
Lemon or lime zest, to lighten up your shortbread
Raspberries
Raisins (if these do not irritate your IBS)
Mini dairy free chocolate chips
Dairy free white chocolate and cherry pairing
Sprinkles
Melted dairy free chocolate dip or drizzle afterwards
Cinnamon spice

I like to work with a shortbread that is slightly sticky to the touch, and forms a great dough ball. It is moist enough to be malleable, not crumble apart and hold its shape, yet dry enough to not stick to everything and cause an absolute mess. It makes the dough really easy to roll out- I do still recommend flouring your work surface and your rolling pin to minimise the chance of sticking. If you find that your dough is too sticky, add some more flour. On the contrary, if your dough is too dry, add in some more butter and mix in vigorously. The ratios and measurements stated below in the ingredients list make a good textured dough, but I am aware that there are different gluten free flour blends. This means there may be slight differences in the moisture absorption of various gluten free flour brands.

I like making shortbread fingers, however, I also love to make little shortbread shapes. For example, I have cookie cutters that can make stars, hearts, circles and moons. Feel free to get creative with your shortbread shapes! It is a very forgiving dough, and particularly mouldable. I make my shortbread fingers about 2cmx8cm with a 2cm thickness. I recommend making letters to spell out names or write a message, for instance for someone’s birthday! Just ensure that you adjust the cooking times accordingly- thicker cookies with a larger surface area will need longer in the oven! Read below to find out the signs of when you should take your shortbread out of the oven.

If you like this shortbread recipe, try out some other dessert ideas:

Make sure to keep an eye on your shortbread! It can burn very quickly if you are not monitoring it towards the end of the baking process. The best time to take out your shortbread is when the edges are slightly browning and the centres still look slightly paler. Your shortbread may still feel soft to the touch when you first get them out of the oven. But do not worry! They will firm up and become more crisp whilst they cool down. By getting them out at this stage of baking, you ensure that your shortbread is crisp and crunchy on the outside, but still holds its warm buttery core that is slightly more on the soft side. If you overbake your shortbread and wait too long, you will end up with a super dry, hard and crumbly outcome.