Shortbread is a simple yet delicious treat! The soft crumbly texture and rich buttery flavor belie the fact that it really isn’t that complicated to make.
That being said, it seems like every time I eat shortbread, the taste and texture is just a little bit different depending on who made this amazing dessert.
That’s why I thought it would be fun to try two different shortbreads at the same time and see which one was the best for me!
For the shortbread head-to-head challenge, I was pairing up Paterson’s Shortbread Fingers against Tesco’s All Butter Shortbread Petticoat Tails. Off the bat, Paterson’s was up a point for the ease of saying their name, although Tesco’s does sound fancier!
As for the packaging, Paterson’s has the iconic red box, while Tesco’s shortbread has a more muted tartan pattern in the background with the interestingly shaped shortbread delicately broken off in the foreground.
That’s one of the really cool things about Tesco’s All Butter Shortbread Petticoat Tails is the shape. Originally designed to look like the frills on a piece of clothing, this makes for a more interesting shape than Patterson’s brick-shaped Shortbread Fingers.
I opened up both packages to take a look at this wonderful shortbread.
The Paterson’s Shortbread Fingers were almost all still intact, which made the whole package much more visually appealing. Unfortunately, the Tesco shortbread had broken for some of the pieces, and took away a bit of aesthetic value…
I opened up the plastic wrappers and took out a bit of each shortbread.
Paterson’s Shortbread Fingers have a nice feel to them, very firm and sturdy. It made me think that you could even dunk them in a mug of steaming tea for a few seconds and they would hold their shape.
Tesco’s shortbread was more delicate, and it seemed like it would break very easily.
Side by side, these two pieces of shortbread definitely have a different look to them. The Tesco shortbread has a dusting of sugar on top, where as the Paterson’s has a slightly uneven shape when it comes to the divots, making it look much more homemade, which is a bonus.
Finally, it was time to try these two decadent desserts.
The Paterson’s shortbread is definitely the sturdier of the two. It has a nice buttery flavor, with a light sweetness to it, and a nice crumbly texture once you bite into it.
The Tesco All Butter Shortbread Petticoat Tails are richer with a stronger butter flavor and more sweetness to it. The shortbread is very light and flaky, almost melting once it hits your tongue.
After trying these two different types of shortbread, concluded for me that the Tesco All Butter Shortbread Petticoat Tails were better. The rich flavor, interesting shape, and very light crumbly nature put this brand over the top.
However, if you prefer a less sweet dessert, then Patterson’s Shortbread Fingers are a dessert that you can definitely not go wrong with, as they were also very delicious, and I enjoyed eating them very much!