Ginger Lemon Shortbread Sandwich Cookies
Ginger Lemon Shortbread Sandwich Cookies
Ingredients
For the Shortbread:
- 12 tbsp butter
- 1/3 cup superfine sugar
- 1 tsp lemon zest
- 2 tsp ground ginger
- 1 cup flour
- 3/4 cup whole unblanched almonds ground
- 2/3 cup toasted white bread crumbs
For the Lemon Curd:
- 3/4 cup Meyer lemon juice
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup butter
- 1 tbsp Madagascar vanilla paste
- 3 eggs
- 3 egg yolks
Instructions
For the Shortbread:
- Put butter and sugar into a large bowl and beat with an electric mixer until pale and well combined, about 1 1/2 minutes. Add lemon zest and blend for 15 seconds. Add ginger and beat again until just combined, about 15 seocnds more. Add flour, almonds and bread crumbs and beat until soft dough forms, about 1 minute.
- Transfer dough to a piece of plastic wrap and roll up, twisting both ends tightly as if it were a piece of candy, to form a 3" wide log. Refrigerate dough for 8 hours or overnight.
- Preheat the oven to 300. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper; set aside. Unroll dough, discarding plastic wrap, and cut log crosswise into 1/8" thick slices. Arrange slices on baking sheet in a single layer, leaving them spaced about 1" apart. Bake until just golden and slightly puffed, about 20 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool.
For the Lemon Curd:
- Combine lemon juice, sugar, butter and vanilla paste in a saucepan and heat gently over medium-low heat until butter melts and sugar dissolves completely. Whisk eggs and yolks together in a small bowl.
- Add a small amount of the warm liquid from the saucepan into the eggs to temper them. Temper eggs slowly to prevent curdling.
- Stir the egg mixture back into the liquid in the saucepan, stirring constantly, over medium-low heat until the curd starts to thicken and look somewhat gel-like.
- Press the curd through a fine mesh strainer into a container. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
To Prepare the Cookies:
- Place a small dollop of lemon curd on one cookie and gently press a second cookie onto the lemon curd to spread it evenly and form the sandwich. Continue until all cookies are used.
- Share and enjoy.
(Shortbread recipe adapted from Saveur, June/July 2006)
I love the ‘share and enjoy’ part. When do I expect my FedEx package with these cookies and sweet potato butter, hmmmm? 😀
Seriously, you guys ROCK when it comes to yummy stuff from the kitchen! I’m so impressed!!!!
I got to experience these delicious cookies in the flesh. They don’t puff up much and I was skeptical, but they were delicious.