Name: Sumac and Vanilla Shortbread
Yield: Makes 24–28 shortbreads
Ingredients: 240g (8 ½ oz) butter, at room temperature; 120g (4 1⁄4 oz/1 cup) confectioners' sugar; 360g (12 ¾ oz/2 ¾ cups) all-purpose flour; 1 vanilla pod, seeds scraped out; ½ tsp flaky sea salt; 2 tbsp sumac; 2 tbsp granulated sugar

Photo of Sumac Vanilla Shortbread Cookies on a serving platter.

Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Samantha Seneviratne & Jason Schreiber

An outer coating of sumac-sugar gives these slice-and-bake cookies a bright pop of flavor that balances the rich, buttery shortbread.

Recipe information

Yield
Makes 24–28 shortbreads

Ingredients

For the shortbread:

240g (8 ½ oz) butter, at room temperature

120g (4 1⁄4 oz/1 cup) confectioners' sugar

360g (12 ¾ oz/2 ¾ cups) all-purpose flour

1 vanilla pod, seeds scraped out

½ tsp flaky sea salt

For the coating:

2 tbsp sumac

2 tbsp granulated sugar

Preparation

Step 1
Use a food processor or an electric mixer with a paddle attachment to work the butter, icing sugar, flour, vanilla seeds and salt until the mixture just forms a ball of dough. It takes a while to come together, so don’t lose faith. Once it has formed, turn the dough out onto the work surface. Divide into two pieces and shape each one into a log – I prefer to make it rectangular but it is tasty in any shape.
Step 2
Mix the sumac and sugar on the work surface. Roll the log in the sumac-sugar to coat all over, then place in the fridge to set for at least 1 hour (or freeze it until you want to bake them).
Step 3
Heat your oven to 190°C/170°C fan/375°F/gas mark 5. Line two baking trays with baking paper. Use a sharp knife to cut each log into 12–14 slices and place them flat on the trays.
Step 4
Bake for 10–12 minutes until light golden, then remove from the oven. Leave to cool on the tray before eating.