Pretzel-Shortbread Bars

Rating: 3.61 stars
176 Ratings
  • 5 star values: 44
  • 4 star values: 54
  • 3 star values: 51
  • 2 star values: 19
  • 1 star values: 8

Broken pretzels are worked into the dough: Finely ground crumbs go into the flour mixture, and bigger pieces stud the inside and top layer of the bars.

Martha Stewart Living, October 2011

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Recipe Summary

prep:
20 mins
total:
2 hrs
Yield:
Makes about 2 dozen
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Ingredients

Directions

  • Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Coat a 4 1/4-by-13 1/2-inch fluted tart pan with a removable bottom with cooking spray. Line bottom with parchment.

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  • Pulse 1 3/4 cups pretzels in a food processor until powdery. Transfer 1/2 cup to a bowl; discard any remaining pretzel powder. Stir in flour and baking powder. Transfer remaining 1 1/2 cups pretzels to food processor, and pulse a few times until coarsely chopped.

  • Beat butter and sugar with a mixer on medium speed until pale and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Reduce speed to low, and beat in egg yolk, then pretzel-flour mixture, until combined. Mix in 1/2 cup chopped pretzels.

  • Press dough evenly into pan. Top dough with 1/4 cup chopped pretzels, pressing slightly; discard any remaining pretzels.

  • Bake shortbread until pale brown and firm in the center, 25 to 30 minutes. Transfer pan to a wire rack, and let shortbread cool for 1 hour. Remove shortbread from pan, and cut into 1/2-inch-wide rectangles using a serrated knife.

Cook's Notes

Shortbread can be stored at room temperature for up to 1 week.

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Reviews (10)

176 Ratings
  • 5 star values: 44
  • 4 star values: 54
  • 3 star values: 51
  • 2 star values: 19
  • 1 star values: 8
Anonymous
Rating: 3 stars
12/14/2018
Too crumby - needs more butter - and the flavor is a little flat - maybe drizzle chocolate over the finished cookie -
Anonymous
Rating: Unrated
05/29/2012
This is a great recipe I substituted ap flour for whole wheat flour and used Honey wheat pretzels and cut down on the sugar to 1/4 cup of brown sugar. These turned out great! Also I didnt have a tart pan so I used a loaf pan, made sure to line it with parchment paper leaving 1 inch all round on the side for easy lifting of the shortbread. I used a 9.5 x5.5 loaf pan and they were not crumbly or thin or anything. Just right size bars. Amazing. My hubby asked me to do again the following week.
Anonymous
Rating: Unrated
12/14/2011
Wildhunter is correct. This is a long, thin tart pan. Google 4 1/4 x 13 tart pan and you'll see what they are refering too. Albeit, most of us do not have these in our kitchens.
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Anonymous
Rating: Unrated
12/13/2011
I believe the pan size should be read as "4 1/4 x 13 1/2" which is about 57 square inches, or slightly smaller than an 8x8 pan
Anonymous
Rating: Unrated
12/12/2011
The flavor of this cookie is great, but they are too dry and crumbly. I agree it is too thin, but doubling the recipe changes the outcome for the worse. What to do??
Anonymous
Rating: Unrated
10/22/2011
My daughter made this recipe using an 8x8 pan and release foil - she undercooked it a bit and they came out sweet/salty/shortbread-y and delicious. The only ting she added was 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla. Watch the temperature so they don't dry out too much. We will be making them again. Many have asked for this recipe from seeing my photos of the bars on Flickr. Good Luck!
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Anonymous
Rating: Unrated
10/16/2011
Great treat. Love the salty sweet. I agree pan too big. I did mine in a square cheesecake pan. It was perfect.
Anonymous
Rating: Unrated
10/04/2011
I made these in an 8x8 pyrex baking pan, they turned out perfect. My family ate them so fast I'm going to double the recipe next time.
Anonymous
Rating: Unrated
09/25/2011
The pan size has to be wrong - it's way too big. I used a 9 inch round tart pan and it's still pretty thin. It's a very tasty shortbread. I love the saltiness. I don't mind the dryness - I thought that's how shortbreads are supposed to be. To me, it's not too dry. I think I'll definitely be making this again.
Anonymous
Rating: Unrated
09/19/2011
This recipe has a mistake and also needs some adjusting. First, the size pan in the recipe is way too big. I used a 9x9 tart pan and it was still very thin. Also, the recipe itself is very dry. I like the concept but am going to try an different shortbread recipe next time - and use the concept of adding in the pretzel as described in this recipe.
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