lemon slab shortbread

The vision for this shortbread is a quick and easy cookie that can be made and brought somewhere very easily. It is snackable and delicious with a strong buttery and lemon flavor. It can be easily doubled for a crowd, but as is, it is a nice small batch of delicious shortbread that you can eat yourself throughout the week or share with a friend.

why you’ll love lemon slab shortbread

• It’s delicious with a deep buttery flavor and bright lemon flavor. On the first day it is crisp and crumbly with the soft creamy glaze (literally the perfect texture) and after the second day it is much softer and a perfectly tender cohesive bite.
• This recipe is eggless which is great to have on hand for egg shortages or for family and friends with egg allergies.
• The sizing of this recipe is very customizable depending on how many cookies you want or what pan you have on hand.
• It is fast and easy with minimal supplies and minimal ingredients.

ingredients in lemon slab shortbread

• unsalted butter– room temperature, slightly softened (salted butter will work fine here as well)
• sugar– Granulated sugar gives this shortbread a really nice texture that isn’t doughy or spongy.
• salt– I like Diamond Crystal kosher salt because it is just the best for baking and cooking (according to professional chefs). If you don’t have Diamond Crystal, use half the amount the recipe calls for of regular table salt or fine sea salt. You could also weigh whatever salt you have according to the recipe. (Weight is accurate for salt across the board.)
• vanilla– for flavor (I prefer vanilla bean paste to extract)
• lemon zest– for flavor in the cookie and the glaze
• all purpose flour– the bulk of the recipe
• powdered sugar– for the glaze
• lemon juice– to thin and flavor the glaze

supplies needed to make lemon slab shortbread

• hand mixer or stand mixer
• offset spatula (the handiest little tool)
• microplane or zester
• ⅛ sheet pan (an 8″x8″ square pan is fine OR double the recipe and use a ¼ sheet pan or a 9″x13″ pan)

how to make lemon slab shortbread

This lemon slab shortbread is the easiest thing you’ll make. It’s a quick and easy shortbread cookie that can be made and brought somewhere very easily. It is snackable and delicious with a strong buttery and lemon flavor. It can be easily doubled for a crowd, but as is, it is a nice small batch of delicious shortbread that you can eat yourself throughout the week or share with a friend.

Preheat the oven to 350 F.

Zest a lemon into the granulated sugar. Rub the zest into the sugar with a spatula or your fingers to bring out the oils (aka, flavor) of the lemon.

Cream the butter, salt, and lemony granulated sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer or with a hand mixer. Add the vanilla and mix to combine. Add the flour and mix until there are no dry floury bits and the dough has formed into a moist crumbly texture.

Pour the dough crumbles into an ⅛th sheet pan (6″ x 9″) lined with a bit of parchment paper. Press the dough with your fingers or an offset spatula to compress it into an even slab. Use the offset spatula to smooth the surface of the dough and even it out if necessary. Use a fork to dock (for airflow) the entire surface of the dough.

Bake the shortbread for 30-35 minutes or until it is evenly golden brown.

While the shortbread is baking, make the glaze icing. Combine powdered sugar, melted butter, a little salt, lemon zest, and vanilla bean paste (or extract) in a small bowl until smooth and fully combined.

Once the shortbread has cooled slightly but is still a little bit warm, pour the glaze on the shortbread and spread evenly with an offset spatula.

This is optional, but zest a fresh lemon over the surface of the glazed shortbread. See the photos above for the difference in the glaze when there is lemon zest on top. It adds a nice 3D effect and even more lemon flavor, so what’s not to love.

Let the glaze set for about ten minutes before cutting. Cut the shortbread into five even strips vertically, then cut the shortbread twice horizontally to divide the strips into fifteen rectangles. (Mine are clearly not even. I was rushing.😩)

Just look at the cross section of this shortbread. I’m already planning to make this again. Eating it right away, the texture will be very crunchy with a still moist, very creamy glaze. Storing it at room temp in an airtight container and eating it the next day, the texture will be much softer and the glaze will have solidified, making the bite very cohesive.

success tips for making lemon slab shortbread

• Remember to soften your butter! It shouldn’t be cold right out of the fridge for this recipe. If you’re in a pinch and don’t have a few hours to let your butter naturally come to room temperature, microwave the butter for 2-3 seconds, rotate it, and microwave it for another 2-3 seconds. Keep doing this until it is a nice pliable and slightly soft texture without making it squishy or liquid-y. If you accidentally go too far, put it in the freezer while you prep the ingredients. It’s a fine balance.
• Mise en place’ is a French phrase with the idea of putting everything in its place before beginning to make a recipe. It helps everything to go smoothly and eliminates so much possible stress. Getting all of your supplies and ingredients together beforeever starting the recipe will help tremendously.
• Weigh your ingredients, particularly the flour. It is the most important measurement in this recipe to weigh. Flour can be off in volume measurements by up to 30g, which is a quarter cup! Having incorrect flour measurements can cause your cookies to spread too much or, alternatively, be dry and crumbly. Weighing your ingredients makes everything so much easier, as you don’t have to wash all the measuring cups at the end. However, I do not use the scale to weigh out teaspoon or tablespoon measurements for things like baking powder, salt, vanilla, or cornstarch, for example.

doubling or quadrupling & a note about pans

This recipe is so easy to double or quadruple. Here’s a quick little guide of what pans you would need for the different sizes:

• Single batch: ⅛ sheet pan (6″ x 9″) or an 8″ x 8″ square pan, an 8″ round pan, or a 9″ round cake pan/springform pan (It will be most accurate to my thickness with an 8″ round pan. If you want it a little thicker than mine, use a 7″ round pan.)
• Double batch: ¼ sheet pan or a 9″ x 13″ cake pan
• Quadruple batch: ½ sheet pan (a regular sized cookie sheet)

FAQs

• How do I store lemon slab shortbread? Store it at room temperature in an airtight container. The shortbread will soften over time and be even more delicious.
• Can I use other citrus? Yes, feel free to use lime, Meyer lemon, blood orange, tangerine, etc. Everything in the recipe will remain the same aside from what citrus you use.
• What if I don’t have an ⅛th sheet pan? Use an 8″ x 8″ square pan, 8″ round pan, or a 9″ round cake pan/springform pan.

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