Air fryer recipe · Desserts & Bakes
Air-Fryer Classic Shortbread
Buttery, sandy-textured fingers with a delicate snap and pure vanilla warmth.
- 16 minTotal time
- 150°CAir fryer
- 4Serves
- VegetarianDiet
Nutrition per serving
- 360kcal
- 3.5 gprotein
- 45.1 gcarbs
- 18.6 gfat
- 0.9 gfibre
Per serving, about 4 servings. Figures are estimates from standard ingredient databases, not medical, dietetic, or nutritional advice.
Ingredients
- All-purpose flour1 cup
- Cold butter90 g
- Powdered sugar1/3 cup
- Cornflour2 tbsp
- Vanilla extract1/2 tsp
- Salt1 pinch
Method
Cream gently
Beat the cold butter and powdered sugar just until combined and smooth. The cornflour you add next keeps the texture sandy and soft, so beat only enough to blend and no more.
Bring to dough
Add the flour, cornflour, salt and vanilla and mix just until a soft dough barely comes together. Handle it lightly, as working the flour too hard builds gluten and makes shortbread tough instead of crumbly.
Press and chill
Press the dough into a flat slab about 1 cm thick and chill it for fifteen minutes. Cold dough keeps its crisp, clean edges in the air fryer instead of spreading and losing its shape.
Cut fingers
Slice the slab into neat rectangles and prick each twice with a fork. The little holes let steam escape as they cook, so the shortbread bakes flat and even rather than puffing or bubbling up.
Air-fry
Air-fry at 150C for 16 min until pale gold, never browned. Let them cool fully on the tray before moving, as shortbread is very soft and fragile while hot and only firms up once cool.
