[dilemma]

My granddaughter thinks my shortbread is the greatest so I like to send some in the family parcel at Christmas time. Unfortunately, it arrives with the cookies all broken ("but they still taste good"). I try to wrap them well with lots of crumbled waxed paper in a tin inside a larger box but it doesn't seem to help much.

Could I make them a little tougher by adding more flour or by kneading the dough longer?

Thanks for your help.

[KeeperOfTheGood]

Hey oh

Pardon me for this, EEEWWWWW. Had to say it lol. I would sugest that you are caught a bit between a rock and a hard place (no pun intended), in that "don't fix it unless its broak" is equally true and untrue for you.

1. Reallly, if you have a formula that is well enjoyed, don't change a thing. No one will be happy at all if you do. My grandmum used to do mince with hard icing, and one year decided that she would just not do the icing and EVERYONE in the family badgered her for 10 years to PLEASE MAKE THAT AGAIN LOL. She did make it again befor she died. She was an awsome baker.

2. How BIG are your shortbreads? Are they the 8" roundes done traditionally patterened?

3. Pack better! Get crafty. Think that they can't flex, or they break. So, a layer of cardboard to lay on, As many cut out layers of cardboard to make walls up the side, and a layer of cardboard for the top. Wrap it in a smooth layer of waxpapper, into your tight carboard box, and then pack that box into a box with foam, or styro chunks or some other damper.

4. If you want to change anything, chnage the size or shape of the shortbreads. My grandmum did flat rounds at home, but she always did 3/4 inch balls for "sent" packages. Formula was the same, taste was the same, and the balls shipped better.

[dilemma]

Thanks for your quick reply. I make balls of dough about 1"+ and then flatten them with a cookie stamp. It leaves the impression of a Christmas tree and I really think that it is the tree that makes them taste so good to my granddaughter. They spread during baking to about 2 1/2". I'll try your suggestion of single layers with cardboard separating each layer - it's going to take a lot of cardboard to send 3 doz cookies but what the heck. The shortbread received the biggest response out of a whole boxful of gifts!

By the way, they aren't THAT good. My son refers to it as the Myth of Grandma's shortbread but he likes it too. My daughter-in-law likes the choc. fudge.

Thanks again.

[scott123]

I agree with KeeperOfTheGood. You can change the recipe, but if you do, it will ruin it.

There are two secrets to packaging anything fragile.

Prevent movement

If the cookies move a fraction of an inch inside your packaging, they won't survive the trip. Each cookie has to be wrapped and then sufficient padding around them so that they don't move an inch.

Prevent pressure

With enough packages placed above your box, it will create the equivalent of someone sitting on it. Cardboard will give, squeezing the bubble wrap and crushing the cookies. You'll need two boxes. A rigid plastic/metal one (preferably cubic and not flat) and a larger cardboard one, allowing for about a 3" buffer zone around the metal box. The rigid box, like the cookies packed within it, cannot have room to move in the larger box.

With extremely careful packaging and enough bubblewrap/foam peanuts, these cookies will make it to their destination unscathed.

[dilemma]

Well, the parcel arrived and the cookies were in great shape. I wrapped each cookie in a coffee filter which when folded over 4 times, provided a lot of cushion. Then I placed them fairly snugly on their edge in 3 lb coffee tins. I remember a mover telling me to pack plates on their edge because they can take more impact than if they are packed flat. I buy coffee filters in 1000 size package so had lots on hand and it was much easier than cutting wax paper. Thanks for your suggestions.