Allow me to share a secret with you. It’s not a massive secret, just something that you probably don’t know.
It was early in 2004, a leap year you may note, and having dated Mr E for several months I knew he was ‘the one’! A few weeks earlier I’d enjoyed a few ‘loveheart’ sweets, you know the ones with the cute little messages on them. Anyway I noticed that some of the phrases had been updated from how I recalled them as a child. Now there were phrases like ‘Marry Me’, and ‘Say Yes’! My mind started to work and a few weeks later on, 29th February, a leap year day, with the help of a few hand selected ‘Lovehearts‘ I plucked up the courage and popped the question to him! The rest, as they say, is history! ?
Anyway, in deciding which recipes to share running up to Valentine’s Day, Mr E came up with the idea of some simple biscuits with writing on them, ‘Loveheart‘ style. What a great idea. Not only did it hark back to those lovely little sweets and the progression in our relationship, but it also prompted me to share a biscuit recipe, something which is a little lacking here on Only Crumbs Remain.
Wanting to keep things simple, we went with a shortbread biscuit recipe. Buttery, short, crumbly and undoubtedly classic. I have an awful lot of fondness for shortbread, whether they’re presented as a round, finger or petticoat tail they’re a welcome treat with an afternoon pot of tea! And although shop bought ones are pretty good, you definitely can’t beat a homemade batch.
This particular shortbread recipe is made with the classic 1-2-3 ratio, one of sugar, two of butter and three of flour (including the cornflour which brings an extra lightness to the bake). It also includes some lemon zest, which punctuates the buttery richness beautifully. And although I’ve decorated them making them suitable for a Valentine Day gift, these biscuits would be just as delicious undecorated too.
Of course, though, a plain shortbread biscuit wouldn’t be as much fun as ones decorated with words or short phrases. Think of ‘I Love You‘, ‘Love Bug‘, and ‘Cutie‘, but of course you could use something far more specific or personal.
Normally speaking icing like this is coloured with pastes which can be bought from supermarkets and cake product suppliers. However the reds and pinks supplied by our local supermarket contained animal products and therefore definitely weren’t suitable for our vegetarian home. So having gone home with our weekly shop I started to think about popping out to the cake decorating suppliers, but whilst putting the shopping away the raspberry jam sat in the fridge caught my eye. I wondered if I could use jam in my icing. The principal had worked in our Cherry & Almond Cupcakes a few days previous, so why not in a royal icing?! Happily the seedless raspberry jam worked a treat. By using a little more jam in one mixture than the other it allowed me to create two different shades of pink which undoubtedly brought more interest to our Loveheart Styled Shortbread Biscuits, and happily kept them vegetarian friendly.
So, let’s get to it and bake ‘Loveheart’ styled Shortbread Biscuits!
print recipe
would make a lovely gift for that special someone on Valentine’s Day!
Hands on time: 30 mins Cook time: 20 mins Yield: 5
Essential Equipment
Baking Tray
Plain Round Biscuit Cutter, ours measured 78mm diameter
2 Icing Bags
Piping Nozzle, suitable for writing
For the Shortbread Biscuits
- 110g Unsalted Butter, softened
- 55g Caster Sugar, (we used golden caster sugar)
- 1 Lemon, Zest of, finely grated
- 110g Plain Flour
- 55g Cornflour
- Pinch of Salt
For the Icing
- 50g + 50g Royal Icing Sugar
- 1-2 tsp Seeedless Raspberry Jam
For the Decoration
- Mini Sugar Blossom Flowers (we used these from Sainsburys)
Method
Notes:
a) Use the best quality butter you can afford, as shortbreads contain a high percentage of butter it’s worthwhile buying a good tasting one. b) Increase the batch size by using the 1-2-3 ratio (1 of sugar, 2 of butter, 3 of flour including the cornflour) c) Consider making the shortbread biscuits larger to hold more writing, though these will take longer to cook, perhaps around 30 – 35 minutes. Keep an eye on them whilst they bake. d) If planning to stack the biscuits and tie with a ribbon, ensure the icing is completely set first.
This post has been shared with:
Bake of the Week co-hosted by Helen at Casa Costello and Jenny at Mummy Mishaps
Inheritance Recipes, co-hosted bySolange at Pebble Soup and Margot at Coffee & Vanilla
Katharine
So pretty and what a lovely idea!
Margot
This is such a romantic story Angela! Thank you for sharing with #InheritanceRecipes 🙂 Those cookies would be perfect not only for Valentine's but also anniversaries.
Kat BakingExplorer
Such adorable biscuits! They really are so pretty, thank you for linking up to #TreatPetite
Angela - Only Crumbs Remain
Thank you Kat 🙂 and you're more than welcome it's a great linky 🙂
Angela x
honest Mum
How gorgeous are these biscuits x
Angela - Only Crumbs Remain
Thankyou Vicky 🙂
Mrs Mummy Harris
Oh my life these look amazing! the ribbon definately finishes them off! might try these if i get a moment! #Brilliantblogposts
Angela - Only Crumbs Remain
The ribbon does finish them off doesn't it if they're being given as a gift. I hope you like them as much as we did if you get chance 🙂
Angela x
Nico @ yumsome
These are so cute, and I love that you used jam in the icing instead of the carmine or cochineal-based stuff. It makes such lovely pinks too. Also, those little flowers – adorable!
So cool that you proposed to your beloved… even cooler that he said yes! xx
Angela - Only Crumbs Remain
Thankyou Nico, i was really pleased i managed to get some nice pink colours using the jam – so much nicer than putting all of that horrible carmine and cochineal stuff in it!
I was so happy when he said yes Nico!
Angela x
Jenny
these are adorable Angela – so pretty and perfect for Valentines day or a gift for any special person . I am rubbish at making biscuits so I always have biscuit envy when I see other people show off their biscuit wares. Thank you for linking up to #BakeoftheWeek x
Angela - Only Crumbs Remain
Aw thankyou Jenny, I'm sure you're doing yourself a diservice there as I do recall you made some for GBBO bake along and they looked fab!
No thankyou for hosting 🙂
Angela x
Solange Berchemin
so brave, I could never do that. Thank you so much for linking up to the #Inheritancerecipes
Angela - Only Crumbs Remain
Thinking back it does seem very brave – but thankfully he said yes!
Angela x
Jacqueline Bellefontaine
Love your "secret" how very romantic. You should make these cute biscuits every year on your wedding aniversary from now on
Angela - Only Crumbs Remain
Ooh what a good idea Jacqueline, why on earth didn't I think of that! I'm more than sure Mr E would like that 🙂
Angela x
Anca
They look so cute! I love the decorations too, they are beautiful. x
Angela - Only Crumbs Remain
Aw thankyou Anca 🙂 x
Eb Gargano
Wow – what a fab story! And such cute biscuits – perfect for Valentine's day 🙂 Eb x
Angela - Only Crumbs Remain
Aw thankyou Eb 🙂 I had a lot of fun thinking of what words and phrases to include on them.
Angela x