Apricot Crumble Shortbread

Cream the butter and sugar together in a bowl with an electric hand whisk until pale and creamy. Sift in the flour and cornflour and combine so that the mix comes together to form a dough. (You’ll probably need to use your hands to bring it together at the end.) Knead the dough lightly until smooth, then push evenly into the base of the tin, lined with baking parchment, and smooth the top. Chill in the refrigerator for at least an hour or until firm.

Preheat the oven to 180°C. Make the topping by rubbing the butter into the flour in a bowl with your fingertips until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Stir in the sugar. Scatter the apricots evenly over the chilled base, then top with the buttery crumb mixture, pressing down quite firmly. Bake for 1 1 / 4 hours, or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean with no uncooked mixture on it (it might be a bit damp from the fruit, though). Leave to cool in the tin. When cold, remove from the tin and cut into 10 bars or 20 squares.