Grapefruit & Thyme Olive Oil Shortbread Recipe

As we wait for spring to arrive, citrus comes into its own, and that includes the bitter zing of grapefruit. This grapefruit and thyme shortbread takes just an hour to make and features olive oil for an earthy richness that keeps it from being too sweet.

Perfect with a cup of tea, make a batch for gifting or keep them all for yourself. Adapted from Rasbelyse’s vegan recipe.

Preparation time: 25 minutes
Baking time: 35 minutes
Servings: 12-16 cookies

Ingredients

Shortbread

• 240g (2 cups) flour

• 100g (¾ cup) icing sugar

• ½ tsp salt

• 1 tbsp loosely packed, freshly grated, fine grapefruit zest

• 1 tbsp fresh thyme

• 240g (1 cup) mix of cold, cubed unsalted butter and extra virgin olive oil (or just butter). I recommend no more than a third olive oil to keep the buttery texture and not become too overwhelming a flavour.

Icing

• 200g (1 ½ cup) icing sugar, sifted

• 60g (¼ cup) freshly squeezed grapefruit juice, strained

• fresh thyme, pearl sugar or edible flowers to garnish

Method

1. Preheat your oven to 150°C.

2. Mix together the flour, sugar, salt, zest, and thyme.

3. With your fingers, rub in the butter cubes one by one, then add the olive oil until the mixture comes together in a rough ball.

4. Press the dough into a 23cm fluted tart pan with a removable bottom until it is even all over.

5. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until the dough looks firm, dry, and slightly golden brown on the edges.

6. Remove the shortbread from the oven and straight away, cut into 12 or 16 equal pieces with a sharp knife. Leave the shortbread to cool completely in the tart tin before removing by lifting up the removable bottom.

7. While the shortbread is cooling, prepare the icing by slowly adding the grapefruit juice to the icing sugar while whisking vigorously. Adjust the quantity of grapefruit juice to your desired consistency. Place the icing in a large bowl so you can dip the shortbread into it easily.

8. Holding each biscuit by its side, slowly dip the top part into the icing until it’s completely covered. Place on a drying rack and repeat for all.

9. Repeat the process so that each biscuit gets two layers of icing. Garnish the top of each cookie with fresh thyme, pearl sugar or edible flowers (I used purple sweet alyssum) and leave to dry until firm.

Shop herbs and edible flowers for this recipe