How do I make my shortbread more 'workable'?

[kwaker5]

I have just tried making shortbread men/biscuits rather than pressing it into a tin to bake. It was OK but my dough was quite sticky and difficult to roll out. The the shapes got stuck to the worktop. Recipe was 250/250/100 flour/butter/sugar. I did flour rolling pin and surface but wonder whether I shoudl have had more flour in the dough.

I have seen recipes with ground rice/semolina in. Do they make the dough drier/easier?

Thanks

Is this the recipe you've used before to press into a tin? I think I'd try a different recipe as the quantity/ proportion of the butter to the dry ingredients does seem quite high in yours. That would make the dough sticky and less malleable. I'm not a great cook but I think that rice/semolina flour can give a different texture to the finished biscuits rather than make a fundamental difference to the 'workability' of the dough.

I've only made shortbread a few times, but I think the point is that it's very buttery and therefore it's not the easiest to work with. Maybe chill it before rolling and roll onto greaseproof. Take shapes off the greaseproof with a palette knive perhaps.

I think the proportion of fat to other ingredients is too high. It shouldn't be sticking like that.

My recipe is as follows: 375 plain flour, 375 salted butter, 125 white riceflour or semolina, 125 caster sugar.

Cream butter and sugar till pale and fluffy, work in sifted flours. At this point is should form a firm paste. Kneed lightly on a well floured board. But do not overwork it. 170 for 15 mins.

The semolina does make the short bread more 'short'. This recipe is fab. Halve quantities if necessary as this makes a lot.

My recipe is

100g sugar
200g butter
300g flour

You can replace 50g flour with ground rice - it makes the shortbread crunchier.

My recipe has ground rice in - makes lovely shortbread. I roll it out into a huge sausage, roll it through demerara sugar and then cut it into rounds.

Instead of flouring your board and rolling pin, use caster sugar - doesn't stick at all.

Ooooh, thanks for all those tips! I am going to have another go tomorrow if I get chance. I have some semolina so will 'experiment' with that.

I hadn't used the recipe I used today before (it was on the web somewhere).

The one I have used in the past when I have put it into a tin was 75g butter to 100g SR flour (with 50g caster) with lemon zest. That makes a nice small round one. But I just thought that this recipe wouldn't work if I had to roll it out.

I come out in a bit of a cold sweat if anything involves rolling!

Chill the dough for 30 minutes before rolling out

Roll out on greaseproof or clingfilm

or as suggested if discs OK just sausage it and cut.

love the rolling in demerara idea though.....