Corn flour vs. Corn starch in Irish Shortbread

[Maison Rustique]

First of all, I am not really much of a baker, so be gentle with me and use little words. ☺️ 

 

I love shortbread and in a cooking group, saw someone post about Irish Shortbread. That led me to looking for recipes. I saw one that calls for corn flour and another that calls for corn starch. I do know that these are 2 different things. Obviously, corn starch is much easier for the average person to find. So, my question is, what would be the difference in using one vs. the other? How would it affect the dough and the handling of it, and also the finished product? 

 

I have never used corn flour nor have I ever baked anything that had a significant quantity of corn starch in it, so have no experience. Thanks for your patience with me and my probably stupid question.

[kayb]

Corn flour is simply cornmeal which is very, very finely ground; its dry texture is almost indistinguishable from wheat flour. Cornstarch manufacturing is a more complex process that involves soaking the corn for a period, then separating the endosperm, and washing the starch out of it. 
 

All that to say I’m not certain how that’d impact the recipe.

[blue_dolphin]

Not a stupid question at all.  @kayb's answer holds true in the US but in the UK, Europe, including Ireland, and Australia the finely processed product we call cornstarch is known as cornflour.  

 

Edited December 4, 2021 by blue_dolphin
to add Australia (log)

[pastrygirl]

To confuse you further, corn starch is called corn flour in some places.  Corn starch is pretty common in shortbread recipes, since it has no gluten it makes a more tender, crumbly cookie. 

[Maison Rustique]

So then, I can use corn starch with no worries and expect a wonderful shortbread like I want! Thank you all!  ❣️

[blue_dolphin]

Since you're following an Irish recipe, that's probably going to be closest what they are making.  That said, you'd probably get a nice shortbread with either one, just different.  I've got a number of recipes for cornmeal shortbread and some that call for polenta.  They're going to add a bit of a gritty texture which can be nice, depending on your preferences. Do post your thoughts after baking!

 

Today, I'm planning on trying a recipe for salted rosemary shortbread that's flavored with grapefruit zest.  It calls for 180g AP flour and 43g rice flour, assuming my pantry coughs it up 🙃

[FlashJack]

8 hours ago, blue_dolphin said:

43g rice flour

If you have rice and a spice grinder you have rice flour.

 

You knew that. Just a reminder.

[Anna N]

I think if it’s an Irish recipe and it calls for corn flour then corn starch would be perfect  They are the same thing with a different name.

However, I also learned that there is such a thing as corn flour which is neither the corn starch nor corn flour as it’s generally assumed.  It is a specialized flour called for in at least one recipe in Modernist Bread. Very unlikely that this specialized flour would be called for in shortbread. 

[blue_dolphin]

16 minutes ago, FlashJack said:

If you have rice and a spice grinder you have rice flour.

 

You knew that. Just a reminder.

Yes, indeed! A tip I picked up from Vivian Howard in her book Deep Run Roots was to grind some rice to “clean” your spice grinder and use that seasoned rice flour in a breading mix. Then it would be ready to make shortbread-worthy rice flour. 

[Maison Rustique]

22 hours ago, blue_dolphin said:

Since you're following an Irish recipe, that's probably going to be closest what they are making.  That said, you'd probably get a nice shortbread with either one, just different.  I've got a number of recipes for cornmeal shortbread and some that call for polenta.  They're going to add a bit of a gritty texture which can be nice, depending on your preferences. Do post your thoughts after baking!

 

Today, I'm planning on trying a recipe for salted rosemary shortbread that's flavored with grapefruit zest.  It calls for 180g AP flour and 43g rice flour, assuming my pantry coughs it up 🙃

That salted rosemary shortbread sounds wonderful! Please let us know how it turns out.

[Annie_H]

On 12/4/2021 at 11:00 AM, Maison Rustique said:

So then, I can use corn starch with no worries and expect a wonderful shortbread like I want! Thank you all! 

I'm guessing your recipe uses a cup or two of AP flour and a tBsp or less of cornflour, (aka cornstarch)---in the US.

Do you have a link to the recipe? US cornstarch and US cornflour are very different things. US cornstarch is found in the baking isle with the baking soda and baking powder. Most common is ARGO brand. White and flavorless used to thicken sauces and the amount in your recipe will be a tBsp or less. 

US cornflour is 'floured' corn meal. Finely ground. Same flavor as cornmeal used in corn breads. I use US cornflour almost exclusively in waffles, pancakes, corn cakes, fritters, etc. And making cheddar/romano sesame cheese coin crackers today using a new cornflour just delivered. It says medium grind on the package, 'GreatRiver' brand new to me. The few rotten amazon reviews said it was too much like an AP flour grind. But that is what I wanted so ordered. Coarse, medium, fine, and floured are the usual US cornmeal varieties. 

I use Edna Lewis corn muffin recipe for a savory 8inch cast iron pancake topped with fresh garden fruit like rhubarb, blueberries. A bit of sweet using a crumble of butter/coconut palm sugar/cornflour. Both cornstarch and cornflour are gluten-free.

Bird's custard is cornstarch even though the label says cornflour. It is an English product. 

I've been using Bob's cornflour for years. Not yet recommending the 'GreatRiver' brand as the case of four is yet to be used. Lots of great reviews so looking forward to using it. 

I use the rice trick in my spice grinder. As well as adding AC vinegar, more lemon/lime/spice/toasted sesame oil to my blender after making humus to clean it out and get a free salad dressing. 

BTW, I love shortbread so let us know how it comes out, 😍

.

 

 

 

[Maison Rustique]

@Annie_H, if I recall, it calls for around 1 1/2 CUPS of corn flour. I'll find the recipe and post it later. I'm not on my PC now.

[blue_dolphin]

@Annie_H, here's a recipe from Kerrygold that calls for a cup of flour and a cup of cornflour. 

[Anna N]

4 minutes ago, Maison Rustique said:

@Annie_H, if I recall, it calls for around 1 1/2 CUPS of corn flour. I'll find the recipe and post it later. I'm not on my PC now.

I am guessing that the recipe has been adapted since “Irish” and volume (cup) measurements is an unlikely combination. 

[blue_dolphin]

18 minutes ago, Anna N said:

I am guessing that the recipe has been adapted since “Irish” and volume (cup) measurements is an unlikely combination. 

 

Or it's very old timey.  My Irish grandmother's measuring devices for baking here in the US were the same ones she used in Ireland: a teacup, a juice glass and a small and large spoon. 

[heidih]

1 hour ago, blue_dolphin said:

 

Or it's very old timey.  My Irish grandmother's measuring devices for baking here in the US were the same ones she used in Ireland: a teacup, a juice glass and a small and large spoon. 

Slightly different for my from Europe gran and great gran. For savory it was as you describe but for baked goods it was the scale with the tray and the weights. 

 

Look forward to see @Maison Rustique 's cookie experiment

[Annie_H]

4 hours ago, blue_dolphin said:

@Annie_H, here's a recipe from Kerrygold that calls for a cup of flour and a cup of cornflour. 

So many typos in recipes. It is one cup flour to 1/2 cup corn flour in that recipe as it reads. Still a bit more corn starch than I usually see in recipes here. Those that bake often is it common to stock a pound or more of corn starch in your pantry? My container lasts forever. 

In two of Melisa Clark's shortbread recipes she says that as long as you follow the basic one cup flour to one cup butter you're good to go. Then her listed ingredients in two recipes call for 2 cups flour, one cup butter. No corn starch. But corn starch is so neutral it might let the butter shine I suppose. 

I do stand corrected with a bow to the queen if I'm way off mark. I have a home in Canada that did confuse me at first. In my small village market they only have course cornmeal that needed soaking overnight. (used my spice grinder then brought up a flour mill in my luggage eventually). I used Bird's custard for my sweet tooth visiting FIL and at the time had no idea 'corn four' listed on the label is actually corn starch. Makes sense. 

My baking leans heavily to the savory side. Crackers, flatbreads, sweet potato/kale chips, dark chocolate, etc. Why this interests me. Shortbread falls in the middle. Caloric but not sick sweet. 

 

 

Edited December 6, 2021 by Annie_H
typo lol (log)

[Anna N]

3 hours ago, blue_dolphin said:

 

Or it's very old timey.  My Irish grandmother's measuring devices for baking here in the US were the same ones she used in Ireland: a teacup, a juice glass and a small and large spoon. 

You could be very correct, of course. But such measurements were not based on any standard cup size such as are in use today. And commercially available corn flour also suggests  more modern recipe to me. 
The very best shortbread I ever enjoyed was made by my Japanese friend’s mother. Her mother used rice flour  where  other recipes might use cornstarch. I am really sorry that I did not ask for the recipe. 

[blue_dolphin]

3 minutes ago, Anna N said:

The very best shortbread I ever enjoyed was made by my Japanese friend’s mother. Her mother used rice flour  where  other recipes might use cornstarch. I am really sorry that I did not ask for the recipe. 

 

Ah, the recipe that got away 😢

The shortbread I'm making today also uses rice flour.  I'm curious to see how it turns out. 

[Anna N]

14 minutes ago, blue_dolphin said:

 

Ah, the recipe that got away 😢

The shortbread I'm making today also uses rice flour.  I'm curious to see how it turns out. 

Looks good. You must let us know what you think. 

[Maison Rustique]

Sorry it took me a while to find the recipe. https://www.justapinch.com/print/dessert/cookies/real-deal-irish-shortbread-cookies.html?ttl=1639088943 And now I can't find the other one that said corn flour. It has been one of those weeks--sick cat with many trips to the vet and worrying about him. (He seems to be getting better.) Anyway, I'm disorganized and frazzled.