Keep Your Fingers Off My Fingers! (Dean`s shortbread)

Member Name: topsyturvy

Product:	Dean`s shortbread
Date:	21/10/09 (66 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: lovely taste,

Disadvantages: -

Being a Scottish girl it seems a bit typical of me to say that I like shortbread but it is true that it is one of the things that I see as a home comfort while being away. Through my family we have tried so many different shortbread brands but not all have that nice taste whereas my mother has always told me that Dean's make the best shortbread and I do have to agree with her statement. Another close runner up are the Border company biscuits they are really creamy biscuits but Dean's seem traditional and make it like nobody else does.

Back in 1975 in Helen Dean's kitchen, in Huntly in the North East of Scotland is where the history begins. Helen's husband Bill loved her recipe for shortbread so much that he would use the recipe to raise money for the piping band of Huntly. Her shortbread went down a treat and so she decided to open up her own bakery in the town. In the 80's she was a success in the town and thought about expanding the bakery. In 1992 the Dean's moved to the outside of Huntly in another bakery and from then on the rest as they say is history. It hasn't gone back too many decades the story but Bill is still Managing Director.

They do a mixture of shortbread biscuits at Dean's from Oatcakes, to Petticoat Tails and the ones I currently have the Fingers. They also do more luxury one's like Belgian Chocolate, Pecan, Coconut and now Apple Crumble, Butterscotch and so on.

Sticking to the basic All Butter Shortbread Fingers, these are probably my favourites. I picked them up at my local Tesco down in England so they do distribute nationally. The packaging is very easy to spot and is very traditional being a creamy almost shortbread colours half. The other half is a green and blue tartan backdrop with two of the fingers lying on top. In the corner is the Dean's logo and a sketch of a woman working in the bakery which could be Helen herself back in the day.

Going by the daily amount, the calories per finger is 106; the fat is 5.3g which is quite high and the sugar 3.7g. They state on their packaging that the factories do not use nuts but they cannot guarantee that the ingredients are nut free for allergy reasons. They recommend storing in a cool dry place to prevent the biscuits from going soft. The ingredients include Maize Starch, Wheat Flour, Butter, Salt, and Sugar. They also have a contact address on the packaging as well in case of any complaints. The products are also vegetarian society approved which is good for those who are vegetarian and want a sweet fix.

In the 125g packet that I bought of these I got 6 fingers which isn't too bad. They are neatly laid in a plastic tray so nothing too fiddly. The thin fingers are lightly dusted with sugar to give a sweetness to the butter shortbread and they are light to pick up. Biting the finger, it is true what they say it definitely has that melt in your mouth quality to it. It is a rich, creamy biscuits leaving you wanting another bite. It is not too heavy and has a buttery taste with a hint of sugar which is perfect for having with a cup of tea, to keep British.

This is a great recipe and I like this compared to other shortbreads as some have a really hard biscuit or either don't seem to just melt in the mouth but have no real flavour. This is a traditional recipe which proves to be one of the most popular.

They have a lovely website which gives a lot of information on the company which is located at http://www.deans.co.uk . It has the story of how the company began, a detailed sketch board of how the bakery works and a detailed list of products. They also have a visitor centre up in Huntly in Aberdeenshire if you are ever near and get the chance to go see how the biscuits are made. I think I might make a visit up there as it seems like a nice idea to visit here from looking at the website. They also have information on the business, where products are sold and so on.

The website lists that the shortbread is sold in the likes of Tesco; Morrison's the only English supermarket retailers. For those of you reading from Scotland you can buy in the previous two supermarkets as well as the Co-op, Asda, Sainsbury's and Somerfield. I bought mine at Tesco for the price of 81p which is a bargain really. It isn't too much to part with and being a time of year with Scottish holidays like St Andrews Day and then festivities with Christmas and New Year, our household always have a box of Dean's in so look out for the bigger sets coming out.

Summary: -