Rosemary Shortbread Biscuits

Why do we only seem to use rosemary with savoury dishes like lamb?  It is a delicious herb, traditionally symbolising remembrance, with a wonderful scent.   I've just been tasting some rosemary ice cream, which one of my sons decided tasted like roast lamb (high treat from the Carnivorous One), and thought it could be delicious in sweet biscuits.  Given that lavender flowers are in short supply in March, necessity became the mother of invention...

Make sure that the sprigs aren't too ancient and/or battered, and also make sure that you snip the pieces small so that you neither end up with bits in your teeth nor chew through great stringy bits!

Rosemary Shortbread Biscuits

Rosemary Shortbread

5oz/150g plain flour

3 level tbsps rice flour – if no rice flour, use more plain flour

2oz/50g caster sugar

4oz/100g butter at just above room temperature but not melted

3 sprigs of rosemary, leaves snipped off into small pieces

Preheat oven to 170deg C/325 deg F and cover 2 large baking sheets with non-stick parchment.   Mix together the flours and the sugar.    Add the butter and work it into the dry ingredients, plus the rosemary.   It will form a dryish dough, which you knead a little before rolling (this stretches the gluten and makes the biscuit stick together better).  

Roll out the dough between two pieces of non-stick parchment, about 1/4" .5cm thick.   Cut circles, about 2-3”, 50-75mm, and transfer using a fish slice to the baking sheet.  When you gather up the leftovers and roll them out again, try not to over-knead it, as the final result isn’t as good (what Mary Berry would described as “overworked” – you know the feeling!). 

Bake until firm and golden – the butter in the mixture will brown while your back is turned, so check it frequently after 15 minutes or so.      When they are done, dredge them with caster sugar.  

This quantity of ingredients made about 16 or so biscuits.