Vegan Apricot Fennel Shortbread

I recently had a weird and wonderful cookie from a bakery while I was on vacation. It was a chocolate sugar cookie with fennel. The flavor was so good, so addicting, and so unique! I had to create my own vegan treat with fennel in it – it was a truly amazing flavor. Thats where this idea for this vegan apricot fennel shortbread came from. 

Shortbread

If you have never made a shortbread there are a couple things you should know. Shortbread is typically a 1-2-3 ratio. This means that it is 1 part sugar, 2 parts butter, and 3 parts flour by weight. It is that simple! When making this vegan apricot fennel shortbread, after mixing in the flour it will look quite sandy and that’s okay! As long as your vegan shortbread comes together when you squeeze it together in your hands, it will be perfect. If you have previously made any shortbread or my vegan jam shortbread cookies, you will know what to look for! I love making this shortbread in a tart pan as the edges get a little more crispier. But if you do not have a tart pan, you can make it in a cake pan or a pie tin. It will just be harder to remove and you’ll get less crispy edges!

Fennel

In this recipe, I call for ground fennel. The ground fennel adds a nice background note that perfectly compliments the apricot jam and buttery vegan shortbread. If you cannot find ground fennel (I had to order mine online, which you can as well here), you can grind up your own fennel seeds in a mortar and pestle or a spice grinder. If you go this route, I would start with 1 teaspoon. Before I bought the ground fennel, I was grinding my own and found that it was much more flavorful. So to be safe, add a little at a time to the butter-sugar mixture and taste it until you get the amount of fennel you would like! 

If you absolutely hate fennel, you can also just omit it! This vegan apricot fennel shortbread will be amazing without it but I do suggest trying it! It really isn’t a strong flavor in this recipe, it is more subtle and just a flavor compliment to the apricot.

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Vegan Apricot Fennel Shortbread

by: Katelyn

• V
• VG
• DF

Buttery with a hint of fennel, shortbread cookie wedges topped with a crunchy streusel!

• Difficulty:Easy
• Prep Time:20 mins
• Cook Time:35 mins
• Serves:12
• Freezable:Yes

Nutrition per portion

Ingredients

• 1 cup (226g) Room Temperature Unsalted Vegan Butter Cubed
• ⅔ cup (134g) Granulated Sugar
• 3 ½ tsp Ground Fennel Powder*
• ½ tsp (3g) Kosher Salt
• 1 tsp (4g) Vanilla Extract
• 2 cups (284g) All Purpose Flour
• 1 cup (212g) Apricot Jam

Method

 

1. Preheat your oven to 350°F. Lightly grease a 9 inch tart pan with spray oil.
2. In a large bowl, add the cubed room temperature vegan butter and sugar. Mix with a hand-mixer on medium for 1 minute until combined.
3. Add in the vanilla and continue mixing with the hand-mixer on medium high for 2-3 minutes until the mixture is fluffy.
4. Sift the flour into a medium bowl and add in the salt and ground fennel. Then add the flour into the butter sugar mixture and mix on low speed until all flour is incorporated. The dough will be sandy, but should clump together when you squeeze some in your hand.
5. Take about ⅔ of the shortbread mixture and press it down evenly into the bottom of the tart pan. Don't worry about getting it perfectly flat - some bumps and lumps are ok!
6. On top of the shortbread, put spoonfuls of the apricot jam evenly around the shortbread. Then spread the jam into an even layer leaving about ½ inch border around the edges.
7. Take the remainder of the shortbread mixture and crumble it onto the top in an even layer, making sure to get it all the way to the edges.
8. Place the tart pan in the fridge for 20 minutes.
9. Bake for 15 minutes, then rotate the tart in the oven to get even browning. Continue cooking for an additional 15-20 minutes until the edges of the streusel are nicely browned.
10. Remove the tart pan from the oven and let cool completely.
11. Once completely cool, release the shortbread from the tart pan and cut into 12 equal wedges. Sprinkle the top with flakey sea salt and enjoy!

  * If you cannot find ground fennel, use whole fennel seeds and grind it yourself! It will taste much stronger in flavor, so start with 1 tsp and taste as you add until you get the amount of fennel flavor you would like.