Crispy Oat Flour Shortbread Wedges

1. Preheat Oven

First, preheat your oven to 450 degrees, ensuring the oven rack is positioned in the middle. This high temperature will set the shape of your shortbread.

2. Prepare Oat Flour

While the oven heats, transform the oats into oat flour by pulsing them in a spice grinder or blender about ten times until finely ground. This oat flour will give a delightful texture to your shortbread.

3. Mix Dry Ingredients

Next, in a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the oat flour, all-purpose flour, cornstarch, confectioners’ sugar, and salt. Mix on low speed for about five seconds just to combine the dry ingredients.

4. Add Butter

Add the chilled butter slices to the mixer. Continue to mix on low speed for five to ten minutes until the dough just forms and begins to pull away from the sides of the bowl. This reverse creaming method, where we mix the butter into the dry ingredients rather than creaming it with sugar first, ensures a tender crumb.

5. Form Dough

Press the dough into a 9- or 9½-inch springform pan collar placed on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet, forming a ½-inch thick layer. Use a 2-inch biscuit cutter to cut out the center of the dough; this helps the shortbread bake evenly.

6. Initial Bake

Place the baking sheet in the oven and bake for five minutes at 450 degrees. Then, reduce the oven temperature to 250 degrees and bake for an additional ten to fifteen minutes until the edges turn a pale golden color.

7. Score and Poke

Remove the partially baked shortbread from the oven. Using a chef’s knife, score the shortbread into sixteen wedges. Poke eight to ten holes in each wedge with a wooden skewer to allow steam to escape and ensure even baking.

8. Final Drying

Return the shortbread to the oven, prop the door open with a wooden spoon, and let it dry in the turned-off oven for about one hour. This method ensures the shortbread achieves a crisp texture while remaining tender. The shortbread should be firm but still slightly giving to the touch.

9. Cooling

Finally, allow the shortbread to cool completely on a wire rack. Once cooled, cut the shortbread along the scored lines into wedges. Enjoy your crispy oat flour shortbread wedges!