The Penny-Pinching History of the SHORTBREAD BISCUIT | Does it Actually Come From Scotland?

Did you know they're not making shortbread any longer? Think about it. There you go. G'day GastroMites and welcome to History of a Dish where we give you the quick lowdown on the national dish of the day. Today we're celebrating the good old shortbread. Nori, what can you tell us? Shortbread is a traditional Scottish biscuit usually made from one part white sugar, two parts butter and three parts plain wheat flour. Other ingredients like ground rice or cornflour are sometimes added to alter the texture. The history of shortbread goes back to at least the 12th century and originally started life as biscuit bread which are biscuits that were made from leftover bread dough that was sometimes sweetened and dried out in the oven to form a hard dry rusk. This practice took place over the whole of the British Isles and not just in Scotland. Over time the yeast was lost in exchange for butter making it an expensive fancy treat that was only bought for celebrations such as Christmas and Hogsmanay, the Scottish New Year. Now isn't that the coolest word for a celebration? In the beginning shortbread may have been made as early as the 12th century but its invention or at least the refinement to its current form is often attributed to Mary, Queen of Scots in the 16th century. She had a team of French chefs who had the time, labour and ingredients to perfect the various recipes. So why is it called shortbread? Alright we're getting down to the nitty-gritty here. First shortbread calls for a large percentage of shortening thus the name shortbread. Second short refers to the desired crispness or shortness of the final product. Historically the namesake shortbread was defended by early Scottish bakers who fought to prevent the shortbread from being classified as a biscuit to avoid paying a government tax on biscuits and the rest as they say is culinary history. Next up it's time to take a closer look at the history of tempura. So until tomorrow have a fantabulous day, be safe and eat hard.