Binnur's Turkish Cookbook

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Thursday, February 22, 2007

Turkish Shortbread

(Un Kurabiyesi)

Turkish Shortbread
250 ml unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract or powder
2 cups flour, all purpose
1/2 tsp baking powder

Garnish:
1/2 cup powdered sugar

Cream the powdered sugar and vanilla with butter, then slowly add the flour and baking powder. Make sure everything's well mixed. Make chestnut sized balls with your hands. Put parchment paper on an oven tray and arrange them on it.

Preheat the oven to 375 F (190 C)and bake for about 25 minutes. Immediately sprinkle some powdered sugar on top using a small strainer after you take them out of the oven.

Makes 18-20 Turkish Shortbread.

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62 Comments:

At 10:00 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Delish! I make something exactly like that, but they're called "Mexican Wedding Cakes." Excellent presentation.

 
At 7:51 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Is this the crumbly on the outside yet creamy in your mouth as you eat it....type of cookie I love? Oh, the memories, again!

 
At 8:33 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hello,
How can I replace butter with some oil? Do you have a ratio to mix these two?
By the way, I have been looking for something just like this! I live in America. I heard the name "Shortbread" often but I had never had it before, at least until yesterday. I had a commercial brand shortbread cookie and I started to wonder what kind of Turkish recipe can be like this. I didn't even know what it is really called in Turkish, at least until now. You saved me a lot of work and time:) Thank you very much.
Aysel

 
At 3:55 AM, Blogger Rosa's Yummy Yums said...

They look so delicate and wonderful! Beautiful...

 
At 9:10 AM, Blogger Binnur said...

Hi Erin,
Thank you for letting me know that there's something similar named
"Mexican Wedding Cakes." I wonder how many more names it has all over
the world:)

Hi Sonya,
Yes that's the one, it melts in your mouth...yummy:) so many wonderful memories....

Hi Aysel,
You're very welcome:) I am glad I posted this now. I never replaced
butter with any other oil. But if you really want to replace it, use
the same amount of oil... the taste may not be the same.... are you sure you want to do that.... miss the fragrance of butter:)

 
At 12:29 PM, Blogger Binnur said...

Thank you Rosa, they are really tasty:)

 
At 7:58 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Selam Binnur,

I made these last week. They taste great! However, when making them the dough was really not sticking together. I wondered if I did anything wrong? The only thing I can think of is that I have melted the butter in the microwave before adding it. I wanted to add some fluid because it was really hard to make nice shaped forms of them, but decided not to do as I was not sure what I could add...

Tessekürler,

Meike

 
At 12:46 PM, Blogger Binnur said...

Selam Meike,
Dough is supposed to be sticking together. I never melt the butter, if
you melt butter, icing sugar and butter can't be creamy. That
spoils the consistency. This dough's texture is different than the
other cookie doughs:)
Sevgilerimle,

 
At 4:48 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Merhaba Binnur,

Is powdered sugar the same as icing sugar? I will try to make them and I hope it works!
Thanks
Deniz

 
At 10:03 AM, Blogger Binnur said...

Hi Deniz,
Yes, powdered sugar and icing sugar are the same. If you follow the recipe, be sure it works:)

 
At 4:12 AM, Blogger Jamie said...

Merhaba Binnur Teyze!

I am a yabancı living in Antalya. My roommate and I wanted to make something to share with our neighbours during Şeker Bayramı last week, and we thought we'd give your cookies a try. Everyone loved them! We had people we hadn't even taken them to hear "through the grapevine" how good they were and ask for the recipe! Çoooook teşekkürler!

 
At 6:52 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hi Binnur
I'd like to try making your shortbread they look wonderful. Can i just check with you re the quantity of butter
250 ml - i normally measure butter by weight rather than volume do you know how i can translate your measurement to grammes. Also where does this recipe come from.

 
At 10:58 PM, Blogger Binnur said...

Hi Laura,
Butter is 250 gr (2 sticks). Un Kurabiyesi is a traditional Turkish recipe.

 
At 6:23 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Thanks very much Binnur. I will have a go making these this week. Would you mind if i posted your recipe on my site www.masdudiable.com of course i will link to your site and the recipe as source.

 
At 11:31 AM, Blogger Binnur said...

Hi Laura
Sure you can post as long as you refer to my website:)
Take care,

 
At 1:14 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

cok tesekkur edim Binnur!cok guzel ve Nefis!!Gence yil un kurabiyesi yidim turkiyede. I've never thought i could make it by myself! It turns out really lovely and even better than i've had in turkey! Ben Cinli ve erkek arkadasim Turk. I've tried many of your recipes and love most of them!I'll make dishes with your guiding when he come to China later this year:) Binnur, you are the best!! BTW, he'd love to say tesekkur as well~
Nan

 
At 4:40 PM, Blogger Binnur said...

Tesekkur ederim Nan,
I am glad you liked it:) You can cook or bake every recipe that I've been posting. If you need anything please do not hesitate to ask me:)
En icten sevgilerimi yolluyorum,

 
At 1:45 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

I love your website!My husband is Turkish and your site really helps me out alot.

Thank You

 
At 9:09 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Thanks a lot Binnur. Tam kotu bir cook olduguma karar verdigim ve yemek pisirmeyi terketmek uzereyken siteni kesfettim. Hayatimda ilk kez yaptigim harika un kurabiyelerini gorunce esim de sok oldu. Your recipe's clear and easy. You need to follow just the direction, that's it.

I did it...
Sevil

 
At 12:08 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Thank you Binnur for sharing this recipe. I'll try it soon. I was just wonderin how to mix the ingredients. Would a wooden spoon be alright? And is vanilla the same as vanilla essence?
Thanks
Handan

 
At 7:45 PM, Blogger Binnur said...

Hi Handan,
Thank you:) I mix the ingredients my hand:) If you like use wooden spoon to cream the powdered sugar and vanilla with butter. Then use your hand:) Yes, it is vanilla extract.
Sevgilerimle,

 
At 10:48 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hola from Tenerife!
I have tried to make these on 3 occassions now but every time they just melt and go flat in the oven, what am i doing wrong???

 
At 4:14 PM, Blogger Binnur said...

Hola,
I wish I could know why the balls extended in the oven! Maybe the
heat of the oven was too low, I'm sorry, I really don't know.. This is
the recipe I always use...
Did you preheat the oven? The dough will have melted if you didn't...
Take care,

 
At 9:58 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

it is 250gram of butter? i didnt get the ml mesurement for butter as we only get solid butter here.

 
At 10:16 AM, Blogger Binnur said...

250 gr (solid) = 250 ml = 2 sticks

 
At 12:01 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

My grandmother used to make these, only I was too young and too dumb to learn how to make them from her. I've been searching for the recipe for a long time. They came out PERFECT! Thanks Binnur, you're the best!! Greetings from Paris.

 
At 10:13 AM, Blogger Binnur said...

Thank you:)
Greetings from Toronto.

 
At 4:16 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hi Binnur,

I am really craving this shortbread now, but I just checked and I have no butter :( Can I replace it with margarine?

 
At 10:01 AM, Blogger Binnur said...

Hi,
Sure, but butter gives the taste:)

 
At 10:04 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Dear Binnur,
Thank you very much for shearing your recipes.
My fifth grader studied Turkey and the Un Kurabiyesi was big success in his class.
We live in Scotland and here shortbread is very popular so your recipe was greatly enjoyed between professionals!

 
At 4:07 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Selam
I have just made the Un Kurabiyesi and its in the oven so wish me Luck. Thank you for your great recipes!!!

Nuran
Sydney-Australia

 
At 1:13 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

I forgot to tell. I used ground vanilla in the recipe it's because there is alcohol in the extract one. By the way If you can post a recipe for the eclair that would be so good.Thanks!

 
At 12:35 AM, Blogger Unknown said...

Binnur Hanim Merhaba,

Buyuk bir hevesle un kurabiyesi tarifinizi yaptim fakat ne yazik ki sizinkiler gibi olmadi. cok yassi ve yagli oldular. Acaba neden boyle basarisiz oldum :) cevabinizi rica ederim.

Burcu

 
At 12:34 PM, Blogger Binnur said...

Merhaba Burcu,
Yagli ve yassi olduklarina gore ya 250 ml den fazla yag kullandin, ya da 2 kap tan az un. Tarifi olcu ve yapilis sekliyle oldugu gibi takip ettigin surece resimdekinden farkli olmasi mumkun degil:)
Sevgilerimle,

 
At 8:22 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

I made them for a school asian food festival...
They went down in 2 minutes! Everyone including me loved them!!!!!!!!!!! By Lucy

 
At 10:33 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Ok So for my school project i need to make something and i dont know what to make does any one know anything fast and easy cause i wont be here this weekend so i need help.

Love Sierra

 
At 12:42 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

hello
are u sure about the temp and time cause i made mine and put them even in lower temp oven and they were almost burned after 10 min
thxs

 
At 9:15 PM, Blogger Binnur said...

Hello,
Yes, I am sure:) Almost every oven has different settings. You may need to adjust the time or heat.

 
At 10:36 AM, Anonymous Natalie said...

I made these for class and they were delicious! I made them again for my whole family over Christmas-- a big hit! I am going to be living in Turkey starting in August. I will be there for 11 months, as a high school exchange student. I am so excited to be living in a country with such delicious foods! Thank you for all of your yummy recipes...
-Natalie

 
At 11:20 AM, Anonymous Brie AKGUL said...

I am in Turkey and can only find Vanilla Powder, can it be interchanged? Thanks so Mcuh

 
At 12:11 PM, Blogger Binnur said...

Hi Brie,
Sure, you can use Vanilla Powder instead of Vanilla Extract:)

 
At 5:20 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

merhaba Binnur Hanim,

tarifinizi denedim ve bunca denemeden sonra ilk defa un kurabiyesine gercek anlamda benzeyen bir un kurabiyesi yapma basarisi gosterdim..:))ayrica onceki kurabiyelerimi sabote eden baska tariflerdeki klasik''alabildigince un'' terimini kullanmayarak gercek olculer verdiginiz icin de size cok tesekkur ederim..

 
At 11:10 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

My friend introduced me to this recipe when she made it at my house. Everyone LOVED it!! We do add about 3/4 cups of sugar to the mix and no vanilla extract and it still turns out really yummy! I've made these for picnics and tea parties and they are gone before I can get one for myself!
thank you for the wonderful recipe!

 
At 11:12 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

and the comment about the oven temp - we do bake them at 350 because 375 was a little to "hot" for our oven.

 
At 1:50 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hi! I am looking for a raisan cookie recipe. i Buy the cookies in a store in Ny called EFE! they bake square(maybe rectangular??) raisan cookies there, kind of like a biscuit?? it is a hard cookie, very heavy. can only eat one. it is big, has no sugar on top. sometimes has a few sesame seeds sprinkled on top. not very sweet. Thanks! Really enjoy your recipes/website!

 
At 3:42 PM, Blogger Binnur said...

Hi,
Thank you:) There are so many cookie recipes in Turkish cuisine so I don't know which one they use to make raisin cookies.
Check these recipes, it can be one of them or not:)
Raisin Sugar Cookies
Black Eye Cookies
Turkish Shortbread
Orange Cookies
Walnut Cookies
Chestnut Cookies

 
At 7:06 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

hi binnur
im looking for a recipe that is made of something similar but has a jam filling?

it is then coated with the icing sugar.

my teyze used to make it all the time.

 
At 11:35 AM, Blogger Binnur said...

Hi,
My teyze also used to make it all the time:) Sure, I am going to post it for you, in the future:)

 
At 1:23 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hi Binnur,
I made these cookies today, and while baking, the cookies lost the height, and kind of went flat. Can you advise?

 
At 1:46 PM, Blogger Binnur said...

Hi,
Almost every oven has different settings. You may need to adjust the time or heat. A little bit more heat or a little bit more baking time:) Did you preheat the oven? The dough will have melted if you didn't...

 
At 4:02 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Yes, I preheated the oven, it at first glance everything was fine, but then instantly they went flat. Though, they are still yummy. Next time I may try with lower temperature (150 degrees instead of 190). They went a bit brown as well.

 
At 12:25 PM, Blogger Unknown said...

Hi Binnur,

I am doing the turkish cuisine as part of my project and your recipes are really helpful :)

These turkish shortberads I want to make as a dessert.. but I was just wondering what is best to have with this biscuit.. any recommended youghurt / pudding you recommend ? Thank you xx

 
At 4:25 PM, Blogger Binnur said...

Hi Humayra,
In Türkiye, it is customary to have the Turkish Shortbread with Turkish Tea:)

 
At 7:06 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hello I love love love all your recipes!
I live in Australia and just want to know what degree I should cook these on?

 
At 1:21 PM, Blogger Binnur said...

Hi,
Thank you:) Preheat the oven to 375 F (190 C) and bake for about 25 minutes:)

 
At 6:37 PM, Blogger sharon said...

Merhaba Binnur,

Thank you so much for all your recipes, I have made several of your dishes and they have all turned out perfectly! My turkish husband is always soo impressed, when I make your turkish shortbread I have to hide some otherwise he would eat them all in one go, these biscuits are a definately firm favorite of his, and mine :)

Çok tesekkür ederim
Sharon, Ireland

 
At 7:29 PM, Blogger Binnur said...

Cok tesekkur ederim, Sharon:)
Wishing you and your family a wonderful Holiday Season!

 
At 11:02 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hi Binnur,

I just baked this delicious recipe of yours :) Me and my husband are eating and typing you this comment.It melts in our mouths, smells heavenly... I just want to cry. I have tried baking this cookies many times never tasted this GOOD. I love your recipes as they have never failed me. We would like to THANK YOU! And please keep posting new things. Derya & Keith

 
At 7:57 AM, Blogger Binnur said...

Thank you Derya & Keith:)
Both of you just made my day!

 
At 1:11 PM, Anonymous Holly said...

I just made these but I halved the recipe for a smaller portion, they were so easy to make and absolutely delicious!

 
At 1:46 PM, Blogger Unknown said...

Hi Binnur
I live in London and we do not measure by cup sizes. Could you please tell me the weight in grams or Oz.
Thank you
Jane

 
At 2:47 PM, Blogger Binnur said...

Hi Tay,
One cup is equal to 250 ml. I have a measurement section on the left side of the website, please check it there.

 

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