Sunday Recipe: Celia Wakefield's Customizable Shortbread Cookies

JULIA SPENCER-FLEMING: It's Labor Day weekend, which means, perhaps, bringing a little something along to a cookout. And of course, it marks the beginning of the fall season: everything starting back up at church, resuming your book club or your volunteer group, getting together with friends after a summer spent enjoying the outdoors (New England and the PNW) or hiding from the heat and fire-ash (everybody else.) What do you need to bring in hand to all these events? How about some delicious cookies made from Celia Wakefield's recipe?

 

 

Good morning Reds and readers, friends all, I hope you're having a great Bouchercon and remember if all goes well, ALL the Reds and me too will be at New England Crime Bake. It will be my first mystery con and I look to you to take care of me as I know Julia will be very busy. 

What have I been cooking? I’ve been very jealous of Edith’s tomato crop as I can’t grow anything living as we live in the woods so I am dependent on my local farm stand and I do love tomatoes that taste like tomatoes. I can’t get enough of them at this time of the year and hope the good weather will stretch into September so we can continue to gorge ourselves. Just in case you’re thinking not another tomato recipe, wrong! It was almost a recipe with tomatoes in it but I’ll keep it for another time.

 

Today it’s shortbread, and for those of you with good memories you’re thinking, well she did that back in 2020, not to mention the deconstructed strawberry shortbread summer dessert. But, I’ve been experimenting. Yes, I got brave and like Star Trek went boldly with my baking. 

 

I’m sure many of you know the trouble with a successful dish is that the family and friends want it forever. For example if I ask Victor what would he like for dinner, he’ll reply, ‘A baked potato’. He loves a potato baked well, cut in half and the insides scraped out, mashed, mixed with cheeses, maybe some creme fraiche or feta, a little olive oil or butter or both, s&p, piled back into the shells, anointed well with grated cheese and run under the broiler till a suntan appears on top. So simple, so delicious, so tired of making it.

And I got tired of making shortbread in 2020 when I wasn’t out and about hunting down brands. I tried so many recipes and found nothing really was what I wanted. The pandemic dialed down enough to allow us to go shopping, well masked of course, and I found that Whole Foods had its own brand of shortbread cookies, less expensive than Walkers, of course not as good, but in life we sometimes have to make sacrifices. Also far too sweet, but Victor liked them. Then came the great Global supply chain crisis and again shop shelves were empty or unavailable and still are in some locations. 

Last Christmas I asked for Paul Hollywood’s new book, BAKE. You might ask why, knowing my feelings on baking and whether I’m a star? Not! But who can resist those eyes? And I thought if anyone knew how to make a successful shortbread it was Paul so back into the kitchen I went. Followed his directions, religiously. Mixed carefully, folded by hand gently and was left with a pile of dry crumbs on my parchment paper. I wrapped it all up and bunged it into the fridge while I considered what I might say to Paul should I run across him at Whole Foods. 

 

 

 

 

 

A couple of days went by. Finally I was ready for a little research. I dug out three books for help - Mark Bittman’s Baking Book (a gift 2 years ago,) BAKE, and my Readers Digest book on English cooking must have the answer. The recipes were very similar; the only real difference was that Bittman added an egg yolk. So I got out the dough crumbs, threw them into my Ninja bowl with the big scary blade, added an egg, yes a whole egg, and turned it on. Instantly I had a workable dough. Rolled between two sheets of parchment paper, chilled, cut and baked - Success was mine.

Having baked a few batches since then, here’s my recipe and method for Hacked Shortbread. Now part of following your own baking bliss is adding different flavors. I love lemon. I have also added ginger or cardamon spices to my doughs. I think cinnamon would be lovely too around the holidays. Then the tops can be decorated with pieces of crystallized ginger or other dried fruits. I have sprinkled colored sugars over the warm cookies or even a dusting of confectioners sugar would be pretty. This is no family recipe with traditions, make it your own and send me a photo.

 

 

 

 

Assemble ingredients: 

2 sticks softish butter cut into chunks 

2 Cups Flour 

1/2C + 1 Tblsp sugar (I use cane sugar but brown sugar would be interesting too) 

3/4 C cornstarch

Pinch salt 

Food Processor

There it is: five ingredients and now you add the flavor. I chose lemon using a hack going back to my British Butler days when I made cold lemon soufflé by the bucket.

METHOD:  

• Carefully peel strips of the lemon without added the white pith and chop into smaller pieces. Place them in the food processor together with the sugar and pulse until chopped together. It will smell lovely.

   

• Add the butter and pulse to cream with the sugar and lemon. 

   

• Add half the flour and all the cornstarch and pulse to combine. 

   

• Add the remainder of the flour, the salt and half the squeezed lemon (Approximately 1 Tblsp), pulse to mix together. If the dough looks dry add a little more lemon juice and pulse again briefly.

   

• Turn the dough out on to a sheet of parchment, quickly gather into a ball and top with a second sheet of parchment. 

   

• My rolling pin* has measuring rings of different thicknesses which give me an even roll over the entire piece of dough and working between two sheets of parchment means no need for extra flour and less direct handling of the dough.

   

• This is the first roll so the dough doesn’t need to be as thin as in the final one. 

   

• Roll to incorporate all the ingredients then wrap the parchment around the dough, place in a plastic bag and refrigerate. I like to leave the dough for several hours or overnight. 

   

• When ready to bake, remove the dough from the fridge and allow to soften a little before rolling and cutting. I cut mine into cookies. See video, below.

   

• Cut out the cookies and place on a baking sheet covered with parchment. Place baking sheet in fridge to cool down. 

   

• Gather and wrap dough scraps and refrigerate for a second bake. 

   

• When you are ready to bake set oven to 325F and bake for 15 to 20 minutes. The cookies should be pale with a light sunburn around the edges. Cool on a wire rack and enjoy.

   

   

  In response to questions about when or whether to add an egg: So either 

  1 Tblsp.lemon juice or other juice (how would pomegranate go I wonder) 

  OR an egg. Not both, though I don't think it would affect the flavor. If you 

  chose to add the grated lemon and then some lemon essence, you might 

  need the egg yolk. This is where the magic and trust comes in. When is 

  enough liquid enough to bind the mix but not overwhelm it. - If I chose to 

  add an egg I would separate it and start with the yolk and see how the dough 

  felt. Not good if it's too wet.  

*.  My rolling pin came from Food52, but I just checked Amazon and they have a plethora of choices. 

...And Gladly Teach

JULIA SPENCER-FLEMING: Here in New England, students went back to school for the first time this past Thursday or Friday. (I continue to maintain starting the year at the very end of August, near Labor Day, is the True and Right way to do it, but I acknowledge this is a the minority view in the US.) 

Colleges and Universities are back in the swing; I taught my first class of the semester on Wednesday.  This is my second September without one of my kids in school (Youngest graduated in May, '22) and it still feels weird to be off the great solstice of the parental year after a quarter century. Of course, Youngest is now talking about grad school, so...

 Kindergarten through MBAs and Medical degrees, one constant figure is the teacher. I've had many in my life. My mother got a masters in education and supported her children for several years as a single mom after her divorce. Many of you know my late husband was a special ed teacher. But I want to call out some of my own teachers who helped shape who I am today.

 

Suzanne Ovitt: my first teacher after I arrived back in the US after almost four years living abroad. My parents were divorcing, I was off a military base for the first time in my life, and I was a wreck. Her gentle, supportive, caring presence got me restarted in my new life.

 

Al Marshall: I can't recall if Mr. Marshall taught me English in 6th, 7th or 8th grade. I do recall his enthusiasm for my writing. He took a poem of mine and tacked it up in the teachers' lounge with a note: Don't tell me kids in our school aren't creative. (I know this because my mom was a long term sub there.) He was the first teacher to lay the foundation for my belief I could be a writer.

 

Miss Sutton: I never knew my senior English teacher's first name - our small group of very bright smart-alecks called her Sutton Hoo.  She was actually an adjunct of Syracuse University; we were getting college credit for her class and boy did she make us work for it. Each Monday we were assigned a current affairs topic. On Friday, we had to turn in a well-reasoned Baconian essay on it - five paragraphs, each with five sentences, the whole structured around topic, three arguments in order of strength, and conclusion. Typos, poor grammar and spelling errors were unacceptable. Miss Sutton prepared me for law school eight years before I thought about going.  

Robert Ryan and John "Jack" Pavia: Professors Ryan and Pavia weren't just amazing teachers of history at Ithaca College, they also opened their hearts and homes to students. Prof. Ryan had regular dinners for the history majors, where he would produce gourmet meals that left his small kitchen looking like a food bomb had exploded. Prof. Pavia took us sailing on Lake Cayuga, and along with a great deal of information about Japanese history and literature, he imparted a piece of wisdom I have always remembered: A boat should be big enough for a cooler full of drinks."

I had started with the goal of a BFA in acting, but when I realized I was loving my history classes SO much more than those in voice and movement, I changed majors. 

 

Finally,  not my own teacher, but my kids': Nancy Ouellette. Mrs. Ouellette had all three of my children in her second grade class at St. Patrick's School and lived to tell the tale. She was a funny, compassionate teacher who handled loose teeth with aplomb (so many loose teeth!) and had a creative curriculum that blended science, mathematics and writing together in a way that kept her students engaged and interested in learning. She was Maine's Catholic School Teacher of the Year in '17, and rightly so. Mrs. Ouellette, I hope you're enjoyed a well-earned retirement.

 

How about you, dear readers? Who were the teachers who left their mark on your lives?

Bouchercon Memories

 The winner of KILLIN' TIME IN SAN DIEGO is Lenita, in California! Lenita, please send an email to julia spencer fleming (all one word) at Gmail.com and I'll connect you to editor Holy West!

 

JULIA SPENCER-FLEMING: How to describe Bouchercon? It's a party that moves from someone's suite to the bar to the restaurant to the publisher's shindig to the hotel lobby. It's a four-day university with the best crime fiction authors in the world telling you whatever you want to know about writing mysteries. It's a massive family reunion, if you actually enjoyed seeing everyone in your family.

 

At my first B'con, in Austin, I was nervous and shy (I know, it's hard to believe,) and had the great good fortune to meet Steve Hamilton, who sat down with me and gave me SO much information about the world of crime fiction writers. 

 The next year, in Las Vegas, I swept the awards and barely remember it. What I do recall was the awful hotel/casino (it got demolished a year later!) the bug that bit my butt at the breakfast bar (which will be the title of my children's book, if I ever write one) and getting phone updates on the League Championship final during the Opening ceremonies (Boston vs. Yankees, with Ross and Lee Child parked in front of the overflow bar TV, cheering on their respective teams.)

Julia, Edith Maxwell &"Sherry Harris" in Albany

Lots of my memories are crowded with people, but some are just lovely solitary moments - walking back to my hotel in San Francisco listening to street musicians playing in the warm dark. Looking out the porthole of my room at the Queen Mary at the glittering lights of Long Beach. Starting each morning in St. Petersburg soaking up the sun while swimming laps in the hotel pool.

What about you, Reds? What are some of your memorable Bouchercon moments?

JENN McKINLAY: My favorite Bouchercon was Dallas in 2019 - all the Reds were together. Why can’t I remember the name of this drink? Perhaps I had a few too many.

 

A great many of these were consumed

  

Other memorable times were…meeting Sue Grafton for the first time in Long Beach (2014) and chatting for a half hour in a hallway. No one else approached her, which I found shocking! It was also my first Bouchercon - so wow, just wow! 

 

Another fave was Toronto (2017) where I went to the top of the CN tower! I always try to do some touring while at a conference and that tower has a glass floor. So cool! 

 

Another stellar BCon moment was Raleigh (2015) where I was told my series was getting moved into hardcover and I found out I hit #8 on the NYT which made me useless for the entire conference. Seriously, I had to meet with the head buyer for Barnes and Noble over dinner and I was as dumb as a potato. Luckily, he was very understanding and we’re still in touch. I think that’s why conferences are so important. You get to meet people and form friendships that are truly sustaining in an occupation that can be, frankly, rather lonely.

RHYS BOWEN: My first Bouchercon I knew exactly 2 people. I was chatting with one of them but had agreed to have dinner with the other. A man in the group invited me to join them for dinner. I explained I had a dinner commitment. As they walked away my acquaintance hissed, “You just turned down Jeffrey Deaver!” 

(I was clueless obviously)

My most memorable was winning two Anthony awards  in Toronto only the award was a giant tombstone I could hardly lift. I had to stagger through customs with an incredibly heavy box , trying not to look suspicious 

Rhys, Louise Penny and Debs in New Orleans

 

Other fond memories are all the Jungle Red game shows, good food  in New Orleans, walking into Austin with matching purple cowboy hats   My least favorites were the horror in Las Vegas and the dystopian Albany site.

 

JULIA: We really need T-shirts that say, "I Survived the Las Vegas Bouchercon." And Albany... sigh. Well, at least it was close enough to visit family and friends upstate.

HALLIE EPHRON: Oh dear, I do remember Albany. An impossible city for a conference of that size. I felt bad for the folks who worked so hard to organize it.

I vividly remember my first Bouchercon - it was in Denver (in 2000? Egads). I knew *NO ONE*! I remember after eating alone I wandered over to the bar where Lee Child was holding forth, and chickened out on hanging out. Only now do I realize what a welcoming place that conference can be, wherever it’s held.

My all time favorite (after the Jungle Red game panels which have been fabulous) was when I got to interview GoH Elizabeth George. She is so lovely and smart and it was a breeze. 

 

GOH Elizabeth George & Hallie

 

HANK PHILLIPPI RYAN: Well, so many, and I think I remember the good ones more clearly. Certainly being Guest of Honor in Dallas, that was…well, I am still floating. I still kind of can’t believe it.  And I got to interview James Patterson, who was incredible, hilarious, and absolutely brilliant. I adore him, and we have stayed pals.  (Did you know he mentioned me and how much he loved  that interview in his autobiography? Aww.)

What is Patterson saying to Hank?

 

Anyway, yes, chatting with Sue Grafton. And  the time in maybe Cleveland, where I saw a guy putting out WHIrl360  tote bags, which I knew was for my favorite book at the time, Trust Your Eyes. And I said: “Are you putting out those for Linwood Barclay? I love that book, may I have one?” And turns out, it WAS Linwood Barclay, so that was nice.

And the moment in St. Louis  when William Landay told me he was worried that there were so many arcs of Defending Jacob, because he feared no one would buy it because everyone would already have it. I remember I said: Boucheron is NOT everyone. 

And when Robert Crais had to cancel at the last minute, and the Bouchercon people, in a real Hollywood moment, asked me if I could fill in for him and interview David Baldacci the next day. Well, of COURSE I could. And did. And it was great.

And winning the ANTHONY four times.  PLUS another time winning with the Reds for this very blog! (Where was that, you all?) And every moment with the Reds!

 

JULIA: St. Petersburg! I missed the awards because I was deep in conversation with Brad Parks and lost track of the time. Go on, Hank, I cut you off. What about your first?

HANK: Oh, my first Bouchercon? In Baltimore. I was MISERABLE, and lonely,  and decided to give up on this whole writing thing. Lee Child, who just happened to be there when I was looking pensive, and asked me about it,  told me not to. And I always do what Lee Child says.

LUCY BURDETTE: My first Bcon was in Milwaukee– 2000? I knew not a soul and I was petrified! Terrified! If I hadn't wanted to get published so badly, I probably would have flown right home. I am truly not a natural extrovert, so a big conference like that was very challenging. I have so enjoyed the times the Reds are able to all get together, especially to do a game show. My favorite might have been the one that Julia’s Ross filled in. He was hysterical! This is the photo of the Reds winning best website in St. Petersburg. Oh but wait, Dallas was great fun too, and it was an honor to interview our own Debs!

 

Some extremely happy & honored Reds in St. Petersburg

 

DEBORAH CROMBIE: Oh, so many Bouchercons, so hard to choose! My first Bouchercon was in Pasadena in 1991! I was so nervous and so overwhelmed. But people were so nice and I made friends I still have to this day. I remember Jonathan Gash (he wrote Lovejoy, if you remember) stopped and spoke to me and I thought, “Wow, a real author just talked to me!"

Dallas was fabulous for so many reasons, but some of the others that stand out in memory: Las Vegas (the worst hotel, ugh); Raleigh (my luggage went to California); Albany (we all know how many times we walked up and down those hills but, still, I had a great time at that one); Toronto (Susan Shea and I discovered a pen shop!); St. Petersburg, where the Reds won Anthony!  I am so excited to be making more memories in San Diego.

 

Debs & our own Ann Mason in Toronto

 

 JULIA: Notice how everyone has a happy memory of Lee Child at Bouchercon? That goes to show what a truly lovely gentleman he is. Now it's your turn, dear readers. Share your memories of B'con or any other literary conference/ festival you've been to. And if you're appearing in San Diego today, tomorrow or Sunday, let us know in the comments!