Whether I’m making lemon curd, carrot cake, or a humble tomato soup, I’m always keen to give Mary Berry’s cooking tips a go.

And seeing as I love shortbread at this time of year, it’s no wonder I turned to the Great British Bake-Off legend for her advice on that, too.

Turns out the cook added an ingredient I didn’t expect to the recipe: one which she also sprinkles on her roast potatoes and parsnips to get them crispy and delicious.

Writing in My Kitchen Table: 100 Cakes and Bakes, she promised the addition would increase the “crunch” of the shortbread.

Mary Berry adds semolina to her shortbread

“I like to use semolina as well as flour to give the shortbread crunch,” the chef said, “but you can use cornflour or ground rice instead”.

She also stressed the importance of using real butter (and lots of it) in the recipe for a truly delicious bite.

Semolina can make foods crunchier because it........

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