There are lots of shortbread recipes out there, but I like this recipe the best. These shortbread cookies are delicious, easy to make, keep their shape and don’t require any chilling. I have made this shortbread recipe many times and the cookies always turn out beautifully.
While the sandwich cookies are really tasty, the shortbread cookies on their own are fantastic. You can top the cookies with a little glaze or powdered sugar. They’re all extremely delicious. I love this recipe so much that I have styled an entire holiday cookie box with just this recipe.
To make the chocolate shortbread cookies, replace 2 tbsp of flour with 3 tbsp of cocoa.
Enjoy!
Shortbread cut out cookies
- 1 cup softened unsalted butter (see note)
- 3/4 cup icing sugar
- 2 tsp granulated sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup jam or other filling
-
Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
-
In a large bowl or in a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix the softened butter, salt, icing sugar, granulated sugar and vanilla until creamy.
-
Add the flour gradually to the butter mixture. Mix until the flour is combined and the dough comes together.
-
Shape the dough into a ball. Then divide the dough in two. Cover half of the dough with plastic wrap.
-
Roll the other half of the dough out on a floured rolling surface to about 1/3 of an inch in thickness. To prevent the dough from sticking to the rolling pin, use plastic wrap to cover the dough before rolling. You can reroll the scraps.
-
Dip the cookie cutters in flour before cutting out the cookies. Place the cookies 2 inches apart on a lined cookie sheet.
-
Check the cookies at 11 minutes. They may take up to 15 minutes to bake depending on the size and thickness of the cookies, and your oven. The cookies will be ready to come out of the oven when the bottoms of the cookies are a very light golden brown.
-
Allow the cookies to cool before assembling.
-
Place one tsp of jam, caramel or nutella in the centre of the base of the cookie. Spread the filling out a little. Cover the base of the cookie with another cookie.
-
Allow the filling to set for an hour before storing the cookies.
- If you do not have unsalted butter on hand, you can use salted butter and leave out the salt. If you like a salty cookie like I do, you can use salted butter and add a pinch of salt as well.
- 1 tbsp lemon juice, milk or water
- 1/2 cup icing sugar
-
Whisk until smooth.
- For a thicker glaze, add more icing sugar one tablespoon at a time until you achieve your desired thickness.
- If you want to colour the glaze, add one or two drops of food colouring at a time until you achieve your desired colour.