Easy Shortbread Cookies Recipe is delicious and easy to make dessert, snack and traditional Christmas treat. Classic shortbread cookies recipe uses only three ingredients: salted butter, powdered sugar and flour. If you add a hint of vanilla extract, you’ll have the best shortbread cookies ever.
Easy Shortbread Cookies Recipe
Shortbread cookies are classic. They are Christmas staple. My favorite Christmas shortbread cookies are Christmas Maraschino Cherry Shortbread Cookies. For Halloween, I dressed them into Halloween Monsters Shortbread Cookies.
Besides holiday tradition, these simple and easy cookies are family favorite treat all year round. However, they are so simple and easy to make so I often bake them. They are perfect snack for kids with a mug of warm cocoa, delicious treat alongside a cup of coffee or tea when I hang around with my friends and they make great gifts for the neighbors!
What are the ingredients for shortbread cookies?
This Easy Shortbread Cookies Recipe only four ingredients that you always have on hand:
1 cup of salted butter
¾ cup of powdered sugar
2 ½ cups of all-purpose flour
and 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract (optional)
How do you make shortbread cookies?
Classic shortbread cookies recipe is super simple and easy to make. Beat 1 cup of softened unsalted butter with ¾ cup of powdered sugar and 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract just to combine. Gradually add flour and mix until everything is incorporate. The mixture will look crumbly or sandy at this point, so you should knead it just a few times with your hands, to come together.
Although, you can roll out the batter immediately, but I prefer to chill it I the fridge for about 45-60 minutes. Then roll out the dough and cut desired shapes.
When ready to bake the cookies, preheat the oven to 325 F and line baking sheets with parchment paper. Then, roll the dough 1/3- 1/2 inch thick and cut in desired shapes. Using a pizza cuter or sharp knife cut rectangles. But, if you want to make triangles like “pizza cuts” you’ll need 2 bowl. I used 7.5-inch bowl to cut out large circle. Next, use smaller (6-inch) bowl and lightly press onto circle to make the rim. Use knife to make dents over the rim. With a wooden skewer make dots. Finally, arrange the cookies onto baking sheet leaving at least 1-inch space between and bake at 325 F until the edges are lightly golden brown (18-20 minutes).
Shortbread cookies are baked at a low temperature (325 F) to avoid browning. When cooked, they are nearly white, or a light golden brown. They may be crumbly right after baking but they will become firmer after cooling.
If you like this Easy Shortbread Cookies Recipe you will also like these amazing shortbread cookies:
Make the classic shortbread cookies with red bits of Maraschino Cherry and you will get beautiful Christmas Cookies – Maraschino Cherry Shortbread Cookies.
How many recipes I try, from time to time, I go back to the beautiful Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Shortbread Cookies.
Lemon Shortbread Cookies with bits of white chocolate, topped with lemon curd are delicious and refreshing summer treat.
Easy Shortbread Cookies Recipe
Prep Time: 60- Cook Time: 20
- Total Time: 80
Yield: 25 1x
Category: Desserts
Method: bake
Cuisine: American
Print Recipe
Pin RecipeDescription
Easy Shortbread Cookies Recipe is delicious and easy to make dessert, snack and traditional Christmas treat.
Ingredients
- 1 cup salted butter-softened
- ¾ cup powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
Instructions
- Mix softened butter, powdered sugar and vanilla, just to combine.
- Gradually add flour and mix to combine. Do not mix too much. The mixture will look crumbly. Knead it just a few times with your hands to come together. Form a disk, wrap with plastic wrap and chill 45-60 minutes.
- When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 325 F and line baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Roll the dough 1/3 -1/2 inch thick and cut in desired shapes. You can use pizza cuter or sharp knife and cut into rectangles. If you want to make “pizza cuts” use 2 bowl. I used 7.5-inch bowl to cut out large circle. Then use smaller (6-inch) bowl and lightly press onto circle to make the rim. Use knife to make dents over the rim.
- Using a wooden skewer make dots.
- Arrange the cookies onto baking sheet leaving at least 1-inch space between.
- Bake at 325 F until the edges are lightly golden brown (18-20 minutes).
Notes
I like to place cookies in the freezer 5 minutes before baking to help them keep the shape during baking, but you can skip this step. If you chill the cookies in the freezer before baking bake time will be about 22-25 minutes.
38 comments
In the ingredients it lists salted butter as an ingredient. The directions call for unsalted. I’m assuming unsalted is correct?
Hi Annette, salted butter is correct. If you use unsalted butter add 1/4-1/2 teaspoon salt
Hi,
Is it possible to use this recipe as a base for lemons bars and such?
[…] if you like shortbread cookies you can also check this Classic shortbread cookies recipe – the best shortbread cookies […]
The original shortbread recipe posted is the same as my Irish great grandmother’s recipe. It has been in our family for years. It’s nice to see classics and how to adjust them with new flavors. I too, make a lemon and other varieties that never disappoint.
Thank u for sharing your delicious recipe
I Wil try these
[…] Easy Shortbread Cookies Recipe is delicious and easy to make dessert, snack, and a traditional Christmas treat. Classic shortbread cookies recipe uses only three ingredients: salted butter, powdered sugar, and flour. If you add a hint of vanilla extract, you’ll have the best shortbread cookies ever. […]
Hello! I always see these cookies in movies or part of other recipes and i really wanted to try this one! I was wondering if you could tell me what the measure of a cup is exactly. In Portugal we use grams and milligrams and so.
Thank you 🙂
Hi Carlota, 1 cup is 240 ml volume.
1 cup butter is 230 grams
1 cup flour is 125 grams
and 1 cup powdered sugar is 120 grams
Happy baking 🙂
Hi wondering what flour to use for your recipe you say all purpose I use plain flour when making my recipe
Thanks
Hi Geraldine, it’s the same.All-purpose flour is plain flour.
How do you make the designs in the photos?
[…] From: OMG Chocolate Desserts […]
Hi by Powdered sugar do you mean icing sugar or just sugar, powdered? Thank you.
Hi Aishwarya, it’s icing sugar.
Hii bit of a silly question here but do you mix the butter and powdered sugar with a spoon or electric mixer or it doesnt really matter? ?
Hi Cin, use mixer.Happy baking!
Can I have the ingredient in gram?
Thanks for sharing, I will try it
They came out great, I loved them.
This is lovely am going give a try
This is lovely am going to give it a try
Thanks Joy! Happy baking!
I just did it and are the best shortbread cookies ever!! Thank you so much for sharing!!
Thanks!
[…] Easy Shortbread Cookies (from OMG Chocolate Desserts) […]
I was excited at first to try out this recipe with a friend, but was disappointed with the results. We followed the recipe exactly, even chilling the dough, but it was still extremely crumbly when we tried to roll it out, to the point where we couldn’t use most of the dough, as it wouldn’t stay together. But, it did taste good, so I can’t shame it too much. I can say, though, that I won’t be using the recipe again, which saddens me.
is this shortbread cookie recipe for a crunchy cookie ,or soft and crumbly cookie?
Going to try it looks awesome
[…] Source by omgchocolatedesserts.com […]
I want to make a banana shortbread cookie but am unsure if I can just add banana to the normal shortbread recipe and how much any help here would be loved!
This recipe has probably double the flour it needs! I followed the recipe exactly and the dough would not come together even after an hour in the refrigerator. Extremely disappointed with the time and materials involved when the amounts were so off it would not work at all.
Just wondering if you have done some checking on the recipe seems people are having difficulties. I have always wanted to make the perfect shortbread cookies for Christmas but with little time I can’t afford to invest time and ingredients for them to not turn out; so until I try in advance guess will have to stick to my traditional Christmas baking.
Just made these today, and they turned out perfect! Needed a simple and relatively quick cookie recipe for a party, and these went over great, no adjustments needed. Delicious!
I loved them. I will try at my home. I have always wanted to make the perfect shortbread cookies for Christmas. Thanks for sharing your information.
The dough was waaaayyyy too crumbly and it wouldn’t even form into the disk..I’m trying to bake it by pressing it in the pan, but I’m going to have to take a loss on the rest of the dough. I’m so sad that this didn’t work for me.
It might have been the dryness in the house, but the dough was so crumbly, there was no hope of it coming together for cookies. I doubled the recipe and wound up adding a whole stick of butter (five sticks total). The cookies still turned out tasting a bit floury. I’ve made notes to add more butter and 2 – 2 1/2 C flour for next time. I do love shortbread with a thin lemon glaze brushed on (squeezed lemons, lemon zest, and confectioner sugar).