It’s officially the holidays! And what better way to celebrate than with freshly baked cookies? You’ll most likely find holiday cookies in one of three varieties: shortbread cookies, butter cookies, and sugar cookies. They all have similar ingredients, though in different amounts, and some are decorated while others are not. Here’s how to tell the difference between the three types of cookies.
Modern shortbread is a tender, crumbly cookie. But when the treat was first invented in 12th-century Scotland, it was actually made of bread. According to Historic UK, leftover bread dough was baked in a low-temperature oven until it got hard. At that point, it was called “biscuit bread.” As the recipe evolved, the yeast in the bread dough was gradually replaced with butter or another type of fat, leading to the cookie we know today. Shortbread Christmas cookies have a larger amount of fat than flour, which is what’s considered a “short” dough, and gives the cookie its delectable consistency.
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Are shortbread cookies the same as butter cookies?
Shortbread cookies and butter cookies are fairly similar, but the ingredient ratios are a bit different. Butter cookies have more flour and sugar than shortbread. That means that the cookies will hold their shape better than shortbread, which leans toward the crumblier side. Butter cookies are also stronger than shortbread, and are great for rolling out to cut into shapes. These cookies also come from a different part of the world. Butter cookies originated in the late 1800s in Denmark, though no one really knows the actual story of their creation.
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What is the difference between a shortbread cookie and a Scottish shortbread cookie?
There is actually no difference at all between a shortbread cookie and a Scottish shortbread cookie — because shortbread is a Scottish creation. That being said, Irish shortbread and Scottish shortbread are different. Irish shortbread has a different ratio of butter to sugar, and also replaces some flour with a bit of cornstarch to make a denser cookie.
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What is considered a sugar cookie?
A sugar cookie has only five ingredients: butter, sugar, eggs, flour, and either baking soda or baking powder. Some bakers toss in a bit of vanilla extract for extra flavor as well. When you see cookies at the store that are cut out and decorated, they’re most likely Christmas sugar cookies because the dough is sturdy enough to be rolled out and cut into shapes, which generally hold their form while baking. Because there’s more flour than butter in the recipe, there’s a firmer consistency.
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What is another name for a sugar cookie?
Sugar cookies haven’t always been known by that name. When the modern sugar cookie was invented in the mid-1700s, they were called Nazareth cookies. That’s because they were made in Nazareth, Pennsylvania, by German settlers. The cookies weren’t round to begin with, either. They were shaped like keystones, which is the official emblem of Pennsylvania. And across the pond, they have another name as well. So, what are sugar cookies called in the UK? Cookies in the UK are generally called “biscuits,” so residents there call sugar cookies “sugar biscuits.”
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Tips for new bakers
Sugar cookies and shortbread are both relatively easy to make — though they each have their challenges. Start with shortbread. It’s made in a pan and you don’t have to roll the dough or cut the cookies out. You do need to get the butter to a temperature that’s between room temperature and melted, though, which can be a little complicated. For sugar cookies, they’re easier to mix, but if you want more than just circles, you’ll need to roll out the dough, cut it into shapes, and decorate the cookies with icing.
This article originally appeared on goldbelly.com and was syndicated by MediaFeed.org.
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