Named for a town in England in the county of Shropshire bordering Wales, the Shrewsbury biscuit is essentially a shortbread cookie. Carried to America via early colonists this cookie was commonly flavored with caraway seeds which impart a faint licorice taste. If you don’t like caraway, you may simply omit it.
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 8 ounces (2 sticks) softened butter
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 egg
- 2 ½ cups flour with additional as needed
- 1 ½ tablespoons caraway seeds
- zest of 1 lemon
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 F and line cookie sheets with parchment paper.
2. Cream together the butter until fluffy, about 3 to 4 minutes in a stand mixer. Add the egg and beat until well combined.
3. Slightly crush the caraway seeds in a mortar and whisk into the flour along with the lemon zest. Add the flour to the butter and egg mixture and mix until it comes together in a ball. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for an hour.
4. Flour a clean work surface liberally and roll out the dough to ¼ inch thick. Use a 2-inch round or fluted cookie cutter to cut out the cookies and place on the cookie sheet about 1 ½ inches apart.
5. Bake for about 10 minutes or until they begin to brown slightly around the edges. Remove and cool before serving.
