CATEGORY
Shortbread Cookies
2009 CHEFSBEST® AWARD FOR BEST TASTE WINNER
Walkers Shortbread
What Makes a Great Shortbread Cookie?
Scottish in origin, shortbread cookies are a beloved classic, revered for their simple ingredients and buttery taste. Since their overall flavor is relatively subdued, shortbread cookies provide an ideal pairing for coffee, tea, or ice cream.
The best shortbread cookie has two defining characteristics: simplicity and freshness. Shortbread cookies are made from three fundamental ingredients—butter, sugar, and flour—and with so few components, each element should be distinguishable in the aroma. Depending on the specific recipe, you may also be able to smell vanilla or almond.
The flavor of a great shortbread cookie will mirror the aroma. In other words, you should actually taste all the ingredients you smell—sweet dairy, slightly caramelized sugar, and toasted flour.
When you first bite into it, the ideal shortbread cookie will be crispy with a sandy texture that offers a soft, melting quality while dissolving in your mouth.
We know what makes a great cookie, but what makes a bad one?
The worst shortbread cookies we judged failed to use high-quality ingredients—a fatal flaw in a cookie with so few elements. For example, one contender lacked a true butter flavor (our chefs equated the taste to movie theater popcorn butter). Another sign of a poor shortbread cookie is an uneven bake; you should never see a cookie with a light center and dark edges. The worst cookies we judged had a waxy, crumbly, or dry texture and tasted of raw, untoasted flour.
Why is Walkers the best shortbread cookie?
Our expert chefs loved the iconic, classic style of this shortbread. Despite the simplicity of ingredients, Walkers Shortbread was bursting with flavor and created a nice accompaniment to a wide range of food and beverages. The cookie was buttery and silky, with a sandy texture that melted slowly on the palate.
Product Category Definition
The product judged was defined as packaged shortbread cookies for the consumer market, not including 100-calorie snack packs.
Also Judged:
Keebler, Nabisco Lorna Doone, Pepperidge Farm Chessmen
ONE-STEP IDEAS
Shortbread cookies are the perfect accompaniment to an ice cream sundae.
Mix 2 cups of crushed shortbread cookies with ¼ cup of peanut butter and press into a pie tin for a no-bake pie crust.
Make sure to have some of these traditional cookies set out at the holidays.
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TASTING
TERMINOLOGY
PRODUCT
FUN FACTS
- Historians believe shortbread originated in medieval Scotland.
- The “short” in shortbread comes from an early meaning of the word “crumbly.”
- Some shortbread has notched edges, symbolizing the sun's rays—a practice that carries through from the early days of sun worship.
The ChefsBest Award for Best Taste is awarded to the brand rated highest overall among leading brands by independent professional chefs.
