Melt-in-the-mouth Olive Shortbread, A Vegan Shortbread

Out of all the olive recipes in Helen Melser’s The Olive Tree in My Kitchen (and yes, I’ve cooked every single one), this Melt-in-the-mouth Olive Shortbread is hands-down my favourite.

With World Olive Day coming up on the 26th of November, I figured there’s no better time to share this gem. This vegan shortbread swaps out the traditional butter for whole olives and olive oil, making it both plant-based and utterly delicious. Savoury, crisp, and a touch sweet, these little biscuits are dangerously moreish. They’re perfect served alongside a dairy-free Lemon Posset, a coconut Panna cotta, or simply with a hot cup of olive leaf tea. Honestly, once you try them, you might just wonder why butter ever got an invite to the shortbread party in the first place.

Melt-in-the-mouth Olive Shortbread

Ingredients

• 1 ½  cups plain flour
• 1/2 cup raw sugar, semi powdered in a coffee grinder or blender
• 3 tbsp semi-dried olives, coarsely chopped
• 1 – 1 ½  tsp salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
• 1 tsp ground cardamom
• 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 2-4 tbsp water or fruit juice, plus extra if needed

Method

Sift the flour into a large bowl. Add the sugar, olives, salt and pepper and cardamom, and stir to mix. Make a well in the centre and pour in the oil. Gently stir to combine. Add the water or juice and use your hands to gently press the mixture into a ball. If it is crumbly add more water, 1 tablespoon at a time, until it forms a soft mixture that forms a ball. If it is too soft, add a little more flour.

Divide the ball into three and shape into logs. Place in the freezer for 40 minutes. Pre heat oven 180ºC (350ºF) Take the dough out of the freezer and cut into slices (my preference is for 5mm) Arrange the slices a tray and bake for about 10 minutes. Reduce the temperature to 160ºC (325ºF), checking to ensure they have not. browned too much underneath. If desired turn them over so they will be crisp on both sides. Bake for a further 15-20 minutes or until lightly golden.

Remove from the oven and cool on a wire rack. Although they will be quite soft initially they will crisp up once cooled.

Tip: Use a combination of granulated and semi-powdered raw sugar if you like the idea of extra crunch. It will give a caramel flavour to the final product.

In her book, Helen introduces this recipe by saying “My last batch of these were unintentionally left in the oven for about 15 extra minutes. They were very crisp all the way through but I loved them. In fact I now prefer them that way, perhaps they can’t be named shortbread.” So bake for longer if you prefer crispy biscuits too.

Recipe, quotes and images (by me) from The Olive Tree in My Kitchen shared with permission from the author, by Helen Melser and the publisher, Bateman Books.

For more olive plant-based recipes subscribe below and follow along on instagram

Semi Dried Olives

Pre heat oven 120ºC (250ºF) or use a dehydrator

Pit and quarter olives, place on a lined baking tray or dehydrator tray skin side down. Bake for an hour, shaking the tray occasionally, until the olives a dry yet slightly chewy. If using a dehydrator , check hourly until done.

Cool before storing in an airtight jar.