• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
Yummy Tummy
  • Home
  • Recipe Index
  • About Me
  • Masterchef Journey
  • Media
menu icon
go to homepage
  • Home
  • Recipe Index
  • About Me
  • Masterchef Journey
  • Media
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
  • subscribe
    search icon
    Homepage link
    • Home
    • Recipe Index
    • About Me
    • Masterchef Journey
    • Media
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
  • ×
    Home

    Shortbread Cookies Recipe

    Last Updated On: Apr 14, 2025 by Aarthi

    29
    Shares

    Jump to Recipe Jump to Video Print Recipe

    Shortbread Cookie Recipe or shortie is a traditional Scottish biscuit usually made from white sugar, butter, and plain wheat flour. Unlike many other cookies and baked goods, shortbread does not contain any leavening, such as baking powder or baking soda. It is easy to bake and can be made into any flavour combination as you prefer. In this blog post I have shared a basic shortbread cookie recipe along with 5 variations of shortbread with step by step pictures and video. Make these easy biscuits for delicious edible presents for Christmas.

    Shortbread Cookies

    These cookies are such an easy recipe to make and enjoy with your family. I love making shortbread cookies because they are so versatile and they hardly take few minutes to cook and bake. You will love it. This can be baked into any shapes and decorated as per your kids wish. Since it is Christmas. I used Christmas sprinkles to decorate my cookies.

    This particular recipe has just three ingredients. but i added vanilla for flavour.  You can skip vanilla if you want to or even add some almond extract. I dipped my cookies in chocolate after it is baked, but you can skip it too.

    Table of Contents

    • About Shortbread Cookies
    • Watch Shortbread Recipe Video
    • Shortbread Ingredients
    • How to Make Shortbread (Stepwise Pictures)
    • Shortbread Flavours
    • Shortbread Variations
    • Expert Tips
    • Frequently Asked Questions
    • 📖 Recipe Card
    • Shortbread Cookies Recipe | Shortbread Recipe

    About Shortbread Cookies

    Shortbread cookies is delicious buttery and simple cookies which you can make for your little ones. It is very versatile and can be customised to your preference.

    Shortbread or shortie is a traditional Scottish biscuit usually made from one part white sugar, two parts butter, and three to four parts plain wheat flour. Unlike many other biscuits and baked goods, shortbread does not contain any leavening, such as baking powder or baking soda. Shortbread is widely associated with Christmas and Hogmanay festivities in England and some Scottish brands are exported around the world.

    I made a double batch of this dough and made a variety of cookies just to show you the different versions. Meanwhile check out my Thumbprint Cookies & Millionaire's Shortbread.

    Watch Shortbread Recipe Video

    YouTube video

    Similar Recipes,
    Sprinkle Cookies
    Cornflakes Cookies
    Chocolate Fudge Cookies
    Glazed Chocolate Cookies
    Dates Cookies

    Shortbread Ingredients

    All Purpose Flour - You can use plain flour or wheat flour in the cookie. 

    Sugar - Powder regular sugar in a blender or use icing sugar in the cookie dough.

    Butter - use softened butter in your cookie dough. I used unsalted butter, if you are using salted butter, you have to skip the salt in the cookie.

    Vanilla Extract - use good quality vanilla in cookie dough. If you prefer yu can use almond extract, coconut extract for different flavoured shortbread.

    Salt - adding a pinch of salt will enhance the taste of the shortbread.

    Shortbread Cookies in 3 Easy Steps

    Shortbread pastry dough

    Take butter, sugar in a bowl and cream till fluffy. Add in vanilla, salt and mix well. Add in flour and mix well to form a dough. Wrap this in cling wrap and chill in fridge for 1 hour.

    Rolling & Shaping

    Now roll this dough between two sheets of parchment paper or cling wrap. Use cookie cutter to cut out shapes. Pop this cut cookies in fridge for 15 mins.

    Baking Cookies

    Preheat oven to 180 degree C / 350 degree F. Now arrange it in a baking pan lined with parchment and bake for 12 to 15 mins depending on the thickness of the rolled cookies. The cookies should get light golden around the edges. Now remove from oven and let it cool for 5 mins. Remove and cool it on a wire rack completely. Store in an airtight container.

    How to Make Shortbread (Stepwise Pictures)

    Making shortbread pastry

    1)Take softened butter in a bowl. Make sure the butter is softened at room temperature. I am using unsalted butter. If you are using salted butter, then you might have to skip the extra salt in this recipe.

    2)Add in powdered sugar. I just powdered normal sugar in a blender till fine and used it. You can use confectioners sugar (icing sugar).

    3)Cream both butter and sugar till creamy.

    4)Add in salt.

    5)Add in vanilla extract.

    6)Cream all this together till creamy.

    7)Add in plain flour.

    8)Mix well to shape it into a soft dough. The dough has to be soft. If you find the dough dry, you can add a tsp of milk.

    Chilling Cookie Dough

    9)Take the dough and place it over a sheet of plastic wrap. You can use plastic wrap or use parchment paper.

    10)cover it tight. Place it in fridge for few hours before using. You can keep the dough in fridge upto 4 to 5 days.

    Rolling Out Dough

    11)Place the dough between two sheets of plastic wrap or parchment paper.

    12)Roll it thin using a rolling pin.

    Cut-out Cookies Using Cookie Cutters

    13)Peel the plastic off the top layer. Now lets cut out small cookies using a cookie cutter.

    14)If you don't have cookie cutters, you can just cut into bar like shape.

    Baking Cookies

    15)Arrange the cookies in a baking tray. Place it inside a preheated oven and bake.

    16)Shortbread cookies baked. Let it cool completely.

    Icing Cookies & Decorating

    17)I melted some chocolate in a sauce pan for icing. You can go for royal icing too.

    18)Take the melted chocolate and drizzled over the cooled shortbread cookies.

    19)Decorate with sprinkles and let the chocolate set completely.

    20)Serve.

    Shortbread Flavours

    • Scottish Shortbread: Use 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour and ½ cup white rice flour.
    • Vanilla Bean Shortbread: Split a vanilla bean in half lengthwise and use the back of a knife to scrape out the pulp. Pulse the pulp into the flour-sugar mixture before adding butter. Or add up to 1 teaspoon vanilla extract with the butter.
    • Citrus Shortbread: Add 1 to 1 ½ teaspoons finely grated lemon, lime or orange zest with the flour. Add up to 1 teaspoon orange blossom water with the butter if desired. These are classic with poppy seeds.
    • Nut Shortbread: Grind ½ cup toasted nuts in the food processor with the flour before combining with remaining ingredients.
    • Toffee Pecan Shortbread - add ½ cup toffee bits and 1 cup chopped toasted pecan to the dough.

    Shortbread Variations

    1)Slice & Bake Orange Cranberry Cookies

    Delicious buttery shortbread cookies with orange zest and cranberries. I added zest from two orange (around 1 tbsp) and 1 cup of dried cranberries in the cookie dough. Mixed it gently and shaped into a log like. Wrapped the log with plastic wrap and chilled for few hours. Slice the log into pieces, arrange in baking tray. Place it inside a 180 degree C preheated oven and bake for 12 to 15 minutes.

    2)Almond Shortbread Cookies

    This nutty shortbread cookies with nuts which taste so delicious and filling with toasted nuts. I added nuts in this and made this in a muffin pan. So you get perfectly shaped cookies. For making this, finely shop almonds and sprinkle into muffin pan. Place a small ball of shortbread cookie dough over the almonds and press firmly. Now bake in a 180 degree C preheated oven for 20 to 25 minutes.

    3)Cut-Out Shortbread Cookies

    I used mini cookie cutters to cut out cookies. Since I used mini cookie cutters, these take just 5 minutes to bake in a 180 degree C oven.

    4)Cinnamon Sugar Shortbread

    This cinnamon sugar shortbread bars is a delicious buttery and melt in mouth cookie bar which taste so delicious. Preheat oven to 160 degree C / 320 degree F. Take the dough and flatten it in a square baking pan. Mix ¼ cup sugar and 1 tbsp ground cinnamon together, sprinkle this all over the dough. Bake for 30 to 40 mins. Now remove from oven and let it cool for 5 minutes and slice into bars.

    Expert Tips

    • Instead of plain flour, you can use ½ wheat flour and ½ plain flour. You can also use whole wheat flour entirely, the texture might vary a little but still it will taste great.
    • You can use icing sugar or powder regular sugar and use.
    • Any flavoured extract can be used in the cookie dough like coconut or almond.
    • Shortbread cookie dough can be made and stored in fridge for 4 to 5 days.

    Frequently Asked Questions

    How is shortbread different from cookies?

    Shortbread is made from butter, sugar, vanilla, salt, plain flour. Cookies usually has raising agent like baking soda, baking powder.

    Can I use salted butter instead of unsalted butter?

    If you are using salted butter, then you might have to skip the extra salt in this recipe.

    More Recipes to Try

    • Battenberg Cake Recipe (Checkerboard Cake)
    • London's Viral Chocolate Strawberry Recipe
    • Chocolate Pudding Recipe
    • Plum Cake Recipe
    • Sticky Date Pudding Recipe
    • Chocolate Fruit Cake Recipe

    📖 Recipe Card

    Shortbread Cookies Recipe | Shortbread Recipe

    Shortbread Cookie Recipe or shortie is a traditional Scottish biscuit usually made from white sugar, butter, and plain wheat flour. Unlike many other cookies and baked goods, shortbread does not contain any leavening, such as baking powder or baking soda. It is easy to bake and can be made into any flavour combination as you prefer. In this blog post I have shared a basic shortbread cookie recipe along with 5 variations of shortbread with step by step pictures and video. Make these easy biscuits for delicious edible presents for Christmas.
    5 from 1 vote
    Print Pin Rate
    Prep Time: 10 minutes minutes
    Cook Time: 15 minutes minutes
    Resting Time: 2 hours hours
    Total Time: 2 hours hours 25 minutes minutes
    Servings: 20 cookies
    Calories: 228kcal
    Author: Aarthi

    Equipment

    • Mixing Bowl
    • Whisk
    • Cling Wrap or Parchment Paper
    • Cookie Cutters
    • Baking Tray
    • OTG or Oven

    Ingredients

    Shortbread Cookie Dough Recipe

    • 150 grams Unsalted Butter (Soft)
    • ½ cup Powdered Sugar (Confectioners Sugar) (100 grams)
    • 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
    • 1½ cup All Purpose flour / Maida (210 grams)
    • ½ tsp Salt

    Chocolate Dipped Shortbread Cookies

    • 1 cups Dark Chocolate Chips
    • ¼ cup Sprinkles for decoration

    Cinnamon Sugar Shortbread Bars

    • 1 tbsp Ground Cinnamon
    • ¼ cup Sugar

    Almond Shortbread Bars

    • 1 cup Almonds chopped finely

    Orange Cranberry Slice & Bake Cookies

    • 1 tbsp Orange Zest
    • 1 cup Dried Cranberries

    Cut-out-Shortbread Cookie

    • Shortbread cookie dough
    • Mini cookie cutters

    Instructions

    Shortbread Cookie Dough

    • Take butter, sugar in a bowl and cream till fluffy. Add in vanilla, salt and mix well.
    • Add in flour and mix well to form a dough. If the dough is dry and crumbly, add a tsp of milk. Shape this in a log and wrap in plastic wrap. Chill this in fridge for 2 hours. This is your shortbread cookie dough.

    Chocolate Dipped Shortbread Cookies

    • Preheat oven to 180 degree C / 350 degree F.
    • Take the dough from fridge. Unwrap and place a parchment paper on top and bottom of the dough. Roll it thin. Cut shapes using cookie cutters.
    • Place it on a baking sheet and place in fridge for 10 mins. Bake for 15 mins. Remove from oven and cool completely.
    • Melt some chocolate in microwave or in a sauce pan gently. Coat the cookies in chocolate and decorate with sprinkles. Set aside so the chocolate harden. Serve.

    Cinnamon Sugar Shortbread Bars

    • Preheat oven to 160 degree C / 320 degree F.
    • Take the shortbread cookie dough and flatten it in a square baking pan. Mix sugar and cinnamon together, sprinkle this all over the dough.
    • Bake for 30 to 40 mins. Now remove from oven and let it cool for 5 mins. Slice into bars. Arrange it in a cooling rack and cool completely. Store in an airtight jar.

    Almond Shortbread Cookies

    • Preheat oven to 180 degree C / 350 degree F.
    • Chop the nuts in to fine pieces. Sprinkle them in the bottom of the muffin pan.
    • Take small ball of dough and press it over the nuts. Pop this in oven and bake for 20 to 25 mins. Now remove from oven and let it cool for 5 mins.
    • Remove and cool it on a wire rack completely. Store in an airtight container.

    Mini Shortbread Cookies

    • Roll the dough between two sheets of parchment paper or cling wrap. Use mini cookie cutter to cut out shapes. Pop this cut cookies in fridge for 15 mins.
    • Preheat oven to 180 degree C / 350 degree F.
    • Now arrange it in a baking pan lined with parchment and bake for 12 to 15 mins depending on the thickness of the rolled cookies. The cookies should get light golden around the edges.
    • Now remove from oven and let it cool for 5 mins. Remove and cool it on a wire rack completely. Store in an airtight container.

    Orange Cranberry Slice & Bake Cookies

    • Preheat oven to 180 degree C / 350 degree F.
    • To the dough, Add in orange zest and cranberries and mix well. Shape this in a log and wrap in plastic wrap. Chill this in fridge for 2 hours. Now remove from fridge, slice them into 2 cm cookies. Arrange it in a parchment lined baking tray. Bake for 12 to 15 mins.
    • Now remove from oven and let it cool for 10 mins. Arrange it in a cooling rack and cool completely. Store in an airtight jar.

    Video

    YouTube video

    Notes

    • Instead of plain flour, you can use ½ wheat flour and ½ plain flour. You can also use whole wheat flour entirely, the texture might vary a little but still it will taste great.
    • You can use icing sugar or powder regular sugar and use.
    • Any flavoured extract can be used in the cookie dough like coconut or almond.
    • Shortbread cookie dough can be made and stored in fridge for 4 to 5 days.

    Nutrition

    Serving: 1servings | Calories: 228kcal | Carbohydrates: 27g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 13g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Trans Fat: 0.2g | Cholesterol: 16mg | Sodium: 69mg | Potassium: 127mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 15g | Vitamin A: 191IU | Vitamin C: 0.5mg | Calcium: 55mg | Iron: 1mg
    Tried this recipe?Mention @yummytummyaarthi or tag #yummytummyaarthi!
    Join us on FacebookFollow us on Facebook
    Share by Email Share on Facebook

    If you have any questions not covered in this post and if you need help, leave me a comment or mail me @[email protected] and I’ll help as soon as I can.

    Follow me on Instagram, Facebook,Pinterest ,Youtube and Twitter for more Yummy Tummy inspiration.

    IF YOU MAKE THIS RECIPE OR ANYTHING FROM YUMMY TUMMY, MAKE SURE TO POST IT AND TAG ME SO I CAN SEE ALL OF YOUR CREATIONS!! #YUMMYTUMMYAARTHI AND @YUMMYTUMMYAARTHI ON INSTAGRAM!

    More Cookies Recipe to try

    • Nutella with Peanuts - P' Nutella Recipe
    • Butter Cookies Recipe
    • Eggless Honey Walnut Cookies Recipe
    • Peppermint Kiss Cookies Recipe 
    • Chocolate Sandwich Cookies Recipe
    • Cream Wafers Recipe

    29
    Shares
    « Aloo Paratha Recipe
    Sambar Recipe »
    Aarthi

    About Aarthi

    Over the past few years I’ve been on a mission to find and create recipes that I can make from scratch. I hope you enjoy the recipes on this blog as they are tried and true from my kitchen to yours!

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Uma

      at

      Hi Aarthi can we use wheat flour for this recipe, is there any changes in the measurements if we use wheat flour

      Reply
    2. Dorothy Aulder

      at

      I like the efforts you have put in this, regards for all the great blog posts.

      Reply
    5 from 1 vote (1 rating without comment)

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Recipe Rating




    This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

    Primary Sidebar

    MEET THE AUTHOR

    Hi, I'm Aarthi!

    WELCOME. Over the past few years, I’ve been on a mission to find and create recipes that I can make from scratch. I hope you enjoy the recipes on this blog as they are tried and true from my kitchen to yours!

    More about me →

    STAY CONNECTED

    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
    • YouTube

    Useful Links

    • Dosa

    • Idli

    • Rice Recipes

    • Breakfast

    • Lunch

    • Dinner

    Recent Posts

    • Chicken Shepherds Pie Recipe

    • Medu Pakoda Recipe

    • Fig Jam Recipe

    • Kachori Recipe

    As seen in

    BUY MY COOKBOOK

    Footer

    ↑ back to top

    Privacy

    • Privacy Policy
    • Advertisers
    • Contact
    • Recipe Index

    Newsletter

    • Sign Up! for emails and updates

    Stay Connected

    • Facebook
    • Twitter
    • Instagram
    • YouTube

    Copyright © 2021 Yummy Tummy | Technical Partner </> Host My Blog

    Rate This Recipe

    Your vote:




    A rating is required
    A name is required
    An email is required

    Recipe Ratings without Comment

    Something went wrong. Please try again.