Olive Oil Shortbread Cookies
The New York Times Dining Section ran two great pieces lastweek: one, a list of the Best Cookbooks of the Year, and another about the mostnoticeable trend, the “At Home” style of cookbook. Julia Moskin’s piece, “What Happens When Chefs Come Home,” underscores a crucial shift in cookbook consumers: peoplewant recipes of stuff they can actually cook. Glossy studio shots of theunattainable sphere are out; hamburgers and Caesar salad are in.
In her “When Chefs Come Home” piece, Moskin mentions arecipe for Shortbread Biscuits that wisely substitutes olive oil for butter.Still high on my October visit to Tuscany for olive oil crush at Villa Campestri,I thought I have to try this. I founda recipe for olive oil shortbread and then considered my oil choice.
Though vegetal and grassy, the bright green Villa Campestrioil could add an interesting twist to the butter bomb that traditional shortbreadcan be. Or I could end up with a bitter, greenish biscuit.
Only oneway to find out…
The verdict? Moskin is right: olive oil greatly improvesthis classic cookie. I could easily see the Villa Campestri restaurant servingthem with afternoon tea on the terrace.
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| Olive oil adds a luxurious yet subtle flavor boost. |
Admittedly, these cookies aren’t quite as crumbly as traditional shortbread, but they trade texturefor a rich, more nuanced flavor. There’s simply more going on than the averageshortbread cookie. I don’t get palate fatigue from butter overload, which is afancy way of saying “I eat them five at a time.”
These cookies are also comparatively more healthful since we’ve lost the saturated fat of butter.
I’m excited to have found yet anotherrecipe that is improved with the addition of quality olive oil. Maybe thesecookies will be left by the Christmas tree this year…
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