Maple Pine Nut Shortbread

Maple Pine Nut Shortbread

Ingredients

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 3⁄4 cup plus 3 tablespoons maple sugar
• 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
• 1 cup pine nuts
• 16 tablespoons (2 sticks) unsalted butter, chilled, cut into 1⁄ 2-inch pieces, plus more for the pans

Cooking Instructions: 

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly butter two 8-inch cake pans or pie pans.
2. Combine the flour, 3⁄4 cup sugar, salt, and 1⁄2 cup of the pine nuts in the bowl of a heavy-duty electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment.  At low speed, mix briefly to combine. 
3. Add the butter and mix with the mixer at medium speed until the mixture resembles coarse bread crumbs with some pea-size pieces of butter and holds together when a handful is squeezed, about 2 minutes.
4. Place half of the dough in each pan, and press firmly and evenly in the pans. 
5. Sprinkle 1⁄4 cup of the remaining pine nuts and 11⁄2 tablespoons of the remaining sugar over each, and score each into eight equal wedges.
6. Bake until the tops are golden brown, rotating the pans halfway through baking, 25 to 30 minutes. Transfer to a wire cake rack and cool for 5 minutes.
7. Cut through the previously scored lines, and cool completely. Remove from the pans.