MacAdamia Shortbread Cookies

Five ingredients, no eggs, no vanilla, no leavening. These shortbread cookies are pure simplicity: butter, flour, powdered sugar, cornstarch, and finely chopped macadamia nuts. The macadamias add a rich, buttery crunch that makes these taste more expensive than they are.

The cornstarch is the ingredient that sets this shortbread apart from a basic butter cookie. It replaces a quarter of the flour, producing an incredibly tender, melt-in-your-mouth crumb that practically dissolves on your tongue.

Baking low and slow at a gentle temperature for 25 to 30 minutes is how shortbread gets its sandy texture without browning too much. You want the edges barely golden and the centers still pale. Pulling them too early leaves them doughy; going too long turns them hard instead of crumbly.

Kitchen Tips

• Chop the macadamias finely so they’re distributed evenly. Large chunks make the cookies hard to flatten and they crumble unevenly
• Beat the butter until truly creamy before adding the dry mixture. Under-mixed butter means dense, tough cookies
• Flatten each ball with a fork for that classic crosshatch pattern, which also ensures even baking
• Let the cookies rest on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before moving them. They’re fragile when hot and firm up as they cool

Variations

• Press half a macadamia nut into each cookie before baking for a decorative top
• Sprinkle with coarse rock sugar as soon as they come out of the oven for sparkle and crunch
• Dip cooled cookies in melted white chocolate for a Hawaiian-style treat