How to Make Shortbread Cookies

Shortbread cookies are a holiday staple. Both kids and adults love the light sweetness and delicate crunch. They're also one of the easiest treats to bake, and they make wonderful gifts.

Learning how to make shortbread cookies is simple, and it's fun to experiment with different shapes and decorations. Ready to get started?

How to Make Shortbread Cookies: The Basics

The classic shortbread recipe is simple because it only requires four basic ingredients: flour, sugar, butter and salt. (You can omit the salt if you use salted butter.) Better yet, the butter doesn't need to be soft. You can start measuring your ingredients and mixing the dough immediately.

Some shortbread recipes call for superfine sugar, while others call for powdered sugar. If you don't have superfine sugar, you can make your own. One cup plus two teaspoons of granulated sugar turns into one cup of superfine sugar after 30 seconds in the blender or food processor.

How to Make Shortbread Cookies: Get Creative

Because the ingredients for shortbread are so simple, there's plenty of room for experimentation. You can add vanilla or almond extract, or try lemon or orange zest. These subtle flavors will give your shortbread another dimension, especially if you serve it plain.

You can also roll it out and shape it with cookie cutters, then decorate with sprinkles or frosting. Try putting jam or cream filling between two thin shortbread cookies. Add nuts or dried fruit to your dough before baking. Dip cooled shortbread cookies in chocolate or candy melts. The possibilities are nearly endless.

How to Make Shortbread Cookies: Recipes and Pans

While shortbread cookies may be simple, it's still smart to work from a recipe so you get the ingredient proportions right. We love this short and sweet recipe from The Comfort of Cooking as a starting point. There's also a brilliant tip for rolling out cookie dough, which is a step many of us dread.

Shortbread cookies are perfect for Christmas. You can use a biscuit cutter or holiday cookie cutters to turn this dough into cookies. Or you can press it into a shortbread pan with festive designs.

These shortbread bites from Delish are another way to take the easy way out and still end up with delicious results. They're a perfect treat to take to a party, or to put out in candy dishes (instead of candy) at your own holiday gathering.

Experiment with mixing in different kinds of sprinkles, or slice them in squares and place larger sprinkles on top before baking. Try these Christmas trees and gingerbread men sprinkles from Wilton.

Finally, this cookie recipe from Saving Room for Dessert is now at the top of our must-bake list. The one not-so-simple aspect of this recipe is that it calls for half a vanilla bean. You can substitute vanilla extract, but we think it's worth following the recipe to see how you like it, at least the first time around. Once you've mastered it, have fun trying a variety of mix-ins and see what your family likes best!

One last thing: remember to make sure you have cookie sheets and cooling racks on hand. Proper bakeware can make a big difference in how your cookies turn out.