Lemon Curd Shortbread! The only thing better than a perfectly buttery shortbread cookie is a wedge of shortbread filled with luscious lemon curd.
I love shortbread and I have a great go-to recipe that I’ve used for years and years. The recipe is super-simple; just unsalted butter, sugar, a pinch of salt and flour. I don’t even add vanilla to my basic shortbread because I think good shortbread should taste like butter.
As I’ve mentioned before, I was the baker for a British Tea Shop (here in the US) for a number of years. At the tea shop I was introduced to shortbread filled with lemon curd and shortbread filled with jam.
Two rounds of dough are filled with lemon curd (or any other fruit curd) or jam, baked, and then cut into wedges.
I don’t know if this is a typical British tea-time treat or just something the shop owner’s mom created, but it was love at first bite for me.
Scroll through the step by step photos to see how to make Lemon Curd Shortbread:
Split the shortbread dough into two equal pieces.
Roll half the dough to a 12″ round, spread the lemon curd over the dough, and egg wash the edges.
Roll the other half of the dough to a 12″ round and place it on top of the filling.
Trim the edges of the shortbread round.
Score the dough into 12 wedges.
After baking and cooling, cut the shortbread wedges along the scored lines.
Take this shortbread recipe and use you imagination for the filling. Most often I make Shortbread filled with lemon curd or jam, but I’ve tried using a thick cajeta (not successful-it leaked) and frangipane (very successful!).
I used the same shortbread base for my Peppermint Bark Shortbread and Creme Brulee Shortbread for holiday gift boxes. It’s a very versatile recipe that’s definitely worth keeping in your collection.
If you love this recipe as much as I do, I’d really appreciate a 5-star review.
Shortbread Filled with Lemon Curd
The only thing better than a perfectly buttery shortbread cookie is a wedge of Shortbread filled with Lemon Curd.
Ingredients
Dough
- 2 sticks (8 oz, 224g) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1/2 cup (4 oz, 120 g) granulated sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 2 1/4 cups (10 oz, 280g) cake flour
Assembly
- 1/2 cup (5 oz 135g) Lemon curd
- 1 large egg for egg wash
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar for finish
Instructions
Make the Dough
- Combine the butter, sugar and salt in a mixer bowl and mix until softened and combined, do not aerate. Add the flour and mix just until a dough is formed. Split the dough into 2 equal portions
- (At this stage the dough can be wrapped and refrigerated or frozen for later use).
Assemble the shortbread
- Preheat the Oven to 350°F. Place a 1/2 sheet of parchment paper off to the side on the work surface. On another area of the work surface roll one disc of dough into a 12" round (1/8" thick). Transfer to the rolled dough to the parchment sheet.
- Spread the curd over the the dough round, leaving a 1/2" border around the edge. Brush the border with egg wash.
- Roll the other dough to a 12" round. Roll the 2nd dough round onto the rolling pin and unroll onto the curd covered bottom layer. Use a paring knife or pizza cutter to trim the ragged edges of the shortbread round.
- Use a fork to crimp and glue together the edges. Prick the shortbread all over with the fork to create steam vents. (At this stage the round can frozen for later use).
- Use a long serrated knife to lightly score the shortbread into 12 wedges, being careful not to cut through the top layer. Sprinkle the shortbread round with 1 tablespoon granulated sugar.
- Bake until the dough is lightly golden and baked through, about 20 minutes.
- Allow to cool to room temperature and cut along score lines.
Notes
The shortbread will keep at room temperature for up to a week.
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Perfect Lemon Curd
Lemon curd is an incredibly easy to make recipe that is unbelievably versatile in the kitchen. Use curd for a spread on scones, as a tart filling, a cake filling or the base for a feathery lemon mousse.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 teaspoons gelatin powder (optional)
- 1 1/2 cups (12 oz, 336g) granulated sugar
- 3 eggs
- 1/2 cup (4 oz, 120ml) lemon juice from about 3-4 lemons
- Finely grated zest from all the lemons
- Pinch of salt
- 6 tablespoons (3 oz, 84g) unsalted butter, cut into 1" chunks
Instructions
- If you are using the gelatin, bloom in 2 tablespoons cold water in a medium size bowl. Set aside.
- Thoroughly whisk together the sugar and eggs in a medium saucepan. Add the lemon juice, zest and salt.
- Place the butter on top of the bloomed gelatin. Put a fine mesh sieve over the bowl and keep it near the stove.
- Heat the egg/juice mixture over medium low heat, stirring constantly. You must be sure to keep stirring across the entire bottom and corners of the pot so the custard does not have a chance to stick. The mixture will start out opaque with a fine white foam over the surface. As it heats up the curd will thicken, become more translucent and the foam will disappear.
- Cook until the curd will coat the back of a wooden spoon and just begins to boil. Don't allow it to come to a rolling boil. One or two bubbles is all you need to see.
- Immediately remove from the heat and pour through the sieve over the butter and gelatin. You can skip straining the curd if you like the bits of zest in the curd.
- Stir until the butter and gelatin are melted and thoroughly incorporated. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and cool a bit before putting in the refrigerator.
- Refrigerate until completely cooled. If using gelatin, allow it to sit 8 hours or overnight to gel.
Notes
Lime, Orange, Blood Orange, Pink Grapefruit,
- 1/2 cup of juice (about 3-4 limes, 2-3 oranges, 1 grapefruit)
- 1 1/4 cup (10 oz) granulated sugar
- Zest from the fruits
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Janet
Can this shortbread dough be rolled and cut into smaller size cookies?
Eileen Gray
Absolutely!
Analu Cruze
I made my grandmothers/mothers shortbread cookie recipe and decided to spread the tops with lemon curd. It was a favorite of my guest. I was trying to think of alternate ways to either infuse the lemon curd or dress the cookie with the lemon curd. I found your page and I was delighted to see another example. It’s a pie! Fun and still quite presentable. Thank you!
Eileen Gray
We all need more lemon curd in our life, right? This truly is one of my favorite recipes in the world.
Beth
Cake flour and all-purpose flour are two different things. I just used Cake flour and the dough was mushy and fell apart. Please revise your instructions to indicate regular, all-purpose flour.
Eileen Gray
Hi Beth. I’m well aware than cake flour and all purpose flour are different. I purposely use cake flour in this recipe to make a very tender and soft cookie. I’ve been making this recipe for over 20 years with great success. I can’t say what happened to your dough without knowing all the details, could be the butter was too soft. Did you measure the ingredients by weight or volume? Did you try refrigerating the dough? If the butter was too soft that would help.
Joyce Macfarlane
Hi is cake flour plain or self raising also could I freeze these please
Eileen Gray
Cake flour is plain flour, not self rising. You could probably freeze the baked shortbread, but it might be a little soft when defrosted. If you want to work ahead I would recommend that you put the shortbread together, wrap tightly in plastic wrap, and then freeze, unbaked. The day you want to serve you can defrost, then bake. The shortbread is good at room temperature for several days.
CakePants
I adore both shortbread and lemon curd, so naturally this caught my eye. I’ve never had a filled shortbread before, but I’m super intrigued! This looks absolutely scrumptious!
Eileen Gray
Give it a try, you’ll be hooked.