I have really fond memories of shortbread... my grandmother used to make it a lot, and she usually had the Scottish emblem of a thistle imprinted on each one.

Here is my favourite Shortbread recipe (from the Edmond's Cookery Book). Be warned, although there are not many ingredients in shortbread, there is a lot of butter!

Shortbread

250g butter, softened
1 cup icing sugar
1 cup cornflour
2 cups plain flour

Cream butter and icing sugar until light and fluffy. Sift cornflour and flour together. Mix sifted ingredients into creamed mixture. Knead well. On a lightly floured board roll out to 0.5 cm thickness. Shape into a circle or cut into pieces. Place on a greased oven tray. Prick with a fork. Bake at 150 deg C for 30 minutes or until pale golden.

Makes about 30.