Set oven to 400°F. 

Cover a rimmed cookie sheet with parchment paper. Sift the flours together and add salt if you’re using unsalted butter. Ideally, sift the dry ingredients a couple times. Cream the butter and sugar together with a wooden spoon. Add the sifted ingredients and mix by hand until you have a soft dough. Be careful not to knead and overhandle or the shortbread won’t have as delicate a taste.

Shape into medium-thick, round cakes the size of a saucer, place on cookie sheets, prick with a fork, and flute the edges.

• Or, press into a large circle about 8 to 10 inches across and about ¾ inch thick. Mark out 16 ‘slices’ with a knife (just don’t cut all the way through) and put this on the cookie sheets. Or you can use any round cake pan. Prick dough with a fork and flute the edges with your thumb and forefinger.
• Or, instead of a large circle, you can press the dough into squares and smaller circles the size of a saucer.

Bake for 30 minutes until golden brown. Let cool completely on a wire rack. Store in an air-tight cookie tin or container.