1/2 cup butter at room temperature
1/3 cup powdered sugar (unsifted)
1/4 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup flour (unsifted)
Using the back of a large spoon, cream the butter until it is light. Cream in the powered sugar, then the vanilla.
Now work in the flour.
Knead the dough until nice and smooth. (It takes a few minutes. I pull it all together in a piece of plastic wrap, it is easier to start the kneading that way. Once it is together well, I just hold it in my hands and keep folding and pressing to knead the dough)
Spray the shortbread pan very lightly with a non-stick vegetable oil spray. Put the ball of dough in the middle of the pan, and working out from the center, firmly press the dough into the pan. Prick the entire surface with a fork, and bake the shortbread right in the pan at 325 degrees for about 30-35 minutes, or until it is lightly browned. Be sure that the middle is thoroughly cooked and doesn’t look slightly opaque or the shortbread might stick in the pan.
Let the shortbread cool in the pan for about 10 minutes before you loosen the edges with a knife. I place a dinner plate over the shortbread pan, and flip the pan and plate over. If the shortbread does not come right out, firmly tap one edge of the pan and plate against the counter. This should loosen the shortbread and it should drop out. Cut the shortbreadimmediately into serving pieces while it is still warm.
Let the pan cool before washing it in the sink or dishwasher. (The mold really gets much cleaner when you put it in the dishwasher. There are so many nooks and cranies in the Brown Bag Molds that they are hard to clean by hand. It also helps keep the spray oil oxidation from building up on the pan.)