VANILLA BEAN SHORTBREAD

I think this is very perfumed shortbread and very vanilla, because all the vanilla scent ingredient are all in one recipe. The seed from vanilla bean, the Vanilla-scented superfine sugar and vanilla extract, three things in this shortbread. When bake the vanilla perfume fill in the air. This is the first recipe that I want to introduce you to this book.....................(I write about her in:.......................the beautiful book about chocolate). So, the flavor “Vanilla” is one of the great flavor (many people call it plain but it’s not). You can fall in love with vanilla scent easily, if you use the real one.

Note: The texture of this cookie is quite crumble so if you don’t have tart pan with a removable bottom, use round cake pan with a removable bottom instead.

VANILLA-BEAN SHORTBREAD

One 9½ - inch shortbread, creating 12 triangular pieces (mine is only 10 pieces)

1 cup (120g)	unsifted bleached all-purpose flour
1/4 cup (30g)	unsifted bleached cake flour
1/4 cup (30g)	rice flour
¼ teaspoon	baking powder
¼ teaspoon	salt
12 tablespoons (11/2 sticks) (170g)	unsalted butter, softened
	seed scrapings from ½ vanilla bean
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons (76g)	Vanilla-scented superfine sugar
2 teaspoons	vanilla extract
	About 2 tablespoons vanilla-scented superfine sugar for sprinkling on top of the baked shortbread

BAKEWARE: fluted 9 ½ -inch round tart pan (with a removable bottom)

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Have the tart pan at hand.

Sift the all- purpose flour, cake flour, rice flour, baking powder, and salt onto a sheet of waxed paper.

Cream the butter in the large bowl of a freestanding electric mixer on low speed for 2 minutes. Beat in the vanilla bean seed scrapings.

Blend in the vanilla-scented superfine sugar and vanilla extract. Beat on low speed for 2 minutes. Add the flour mixture in two additions, beating slowly until the particles of flour are absorbed and a smooth, soft dough forms. Scrape down the sides of the mixing bowl once or twice to keep the dough even-textured.

Turn the dough into the tart pan. Press it into an even layer, using your fingertips. Prick the dough in 15 random places, with the tines of a fork.

Bake the shortbread in the preheated oven for 30 minutes or until it turns an all-over medium tan color and is set. Immediately dust the top with the superfine sugar. Cool the shortbread in the pan on a rack for 10 minutes.

Carefully unmold the shortbread, leaving it on its round base. After 10 to 15 minutes, cut into wedges and cool completely. Store in an airtight tin.