At the village of Sutton Forest, Nerida Barnsley has turned the baking and enjoyment of her Highland shortbread into an art form. So much so, that her customers at A Little Piece of Scotland often say ‘It’s the World’s Best Shortbread!’.
Nerida’s home-made shortbread has earned renown as the ‘must taste’ experience for visitors to the Highlands. Once addicted, she says, people have been known to carry home armfuls for distribution among family and friends.
‘While Christmas and New Year are traditionally the seasons most often associated with shortbread, it’s really a year-round delicacy, and the season never ends.
“Morning coffee would not be complete without one or two thick squares of golden shortbread”, she says. “You can polish off the rest of the packet in the afternoon.
“I’m sure shortbread is comfort food. The taste takes us back to our childhood when we got home from school mid-afternoon and went straight to the bickie tin.
“All my ingredients are Australian farm produce, and although my shortbread recipe was handed down to me by my Scottish grandmother – it’s a closely guarded family secret – I was born in Australia and started baking shortbread seriously as a fundraiser for The Children’s Hospital.”
Nerida’s
efforts were rewarded with success – and that led to the opening of A Little
Piece of Scotland in the village of Sutton Forest in 1987.
Pretty soon, people became regular visitors to Nerida’s shop in search of her unique shortbread: “You can tell the true shortbread addict” Nerida says with a laugh “They come in and head straight for the shortbread – with a determined glint in their eye!”
Nerida still bakes her shortbread in a home kitchen: “It really is a cottage industry – and it’s sometimes hard keeping up with the demand. But that means that my shortbread is always fresh – straight from the oven to my shop”.
“People often ask how long my shortbread keeps. I tell them ‘about 10 minutes – once you open the packet!’ It truly has a shelf life of many weeks when properly stored – but rarely can anyone resist it for more than a few minutes”.
Nerida’s shortbread comes in three configurations – each clear-wrapped with a cute tartan bow.
“You can have a traditional round – 6 pieces patterned with thistles; or thistle slabs - 8 chunky rectangles; or my favourite, because it is best value, is my bounty pack – popularly known as the greedy pack - 24 petticoat tails of pure indulgence” says Nerida.
The proof truly is in the eating: Nerida’s Highland shortbread has a rich buttery flavour that appeals to everyone.
You can sample and buy Nerida’s shortbread at her shop A Little Piece of Scotland. It’s open every day from 10:30am to 5pm, except for a well-earned break in the second week of January. It's also available at many local fairs, and at the Scottish week in Sydney.
“This is the busiest time of year for bakers like me”, Nerida says “So it’s important for customers to plan for their Christmas needs well ahead. There’s only so much shortbread, cakes and puddings one person can make in a limited time – and I wouldn’t want Santa and his helpers to miss out” Nerida explained.