If you are a cookie lover, try my Chocolate Cookies with Cream Cheese next. Find all my other Cookie Recipes here!
These classic Christmas Cookies will literally melt in your mouth. Not too sweet, made with 4 simple ingredients and that light as air texture will keep you reaching for more!
Lets get straight away into how to bring these Holiday cookies together.
Whipped Shortbread ingredients:
- Butter: We are using room temperature softened butter. But we don't want it over greasy or we are risking the cookies to spread more then we'd like!
- Confectioners' Sugar: Powdered sugar helps in creating light textured shortbread.
- Flour: Measure flour using a kitchen scale or fluff the flour first, measure out in measuring cup and sweep it with a knife to level it off.
- Cornstarch: Cornstarch makes the most light and puffy cookies that you will ever know!
How to make whipped shortbread:
These are just the easiest cookies to make! Just take care not to over measure your flour and cornstarch. And your cookies will bake all puffy and light! To make Shortbread:
- Beat Butter and confectioners' sugar together for 3-4 minutes
- Beat in sifted flour and cornstarch next:
- Chill the dough
- Make cookie dough balls
- Quickly chill in the freezer again while you preheat the oven
- Make a pattern using fork: Optional but super cute!
- Top with sprinkles and bake then
Since the list is so short for these cookies, take care to use quality ingredients. Using good quality butter as opposed to margarine, good quality sugar and flour results in best tasting cookies.
You can also add flavorings like vanilla, almond, mint, orange or lemon to this dough. Or top it with hershey's kisses, jam filling or even candy cane kisses after these come out of oven.
How is shortbread different from cookies?
Should you chill shortbread cookie dough?
Yes, and I can't stress this enough. Chilled cookie dough bakes so much better cookies. Shortbread is high in fat content, chilling the dough will help firming the butter up. This results in thick and puffy cookies!
What does cornstarch do in cookie dough?
- Helps the cookies to bake thick and . It reduces the risk of cookie spreading!
- Cornstarch in the cookie dough yields lighter textured cookies.
- Also cookies with cornstarch bake the softest.
Why did my whipped shortbread spread?
There can be a number of reasons for shortbread to spread. If the cookie dough had too much butter and/or less flour than recipe suggest. Or if you did not chill the dough enough. Or if the oven temperature was too high. Just follow the recipe as written and your cookies will bake just perfect!
Taste and texture of these Cookies:
- Not too sweet
- Buttery and melt in your mouth soft
- Slightly crumbly in a good way (not chewy at all!)
- Light and puffy
More Holiday Recipes for you to try!
If you liked these Cookies give it a star review. Do tell me in the comments below, how did this turn out for you! And don’t forget to share your creations with me on Instagram at #greedyeatsblog Let's connect on Pinterest and Facebook too!
Recipe
Whipped Shortbread Cookies
Equipment
- Hand/stand Mixer
- Parchment paper lined Baking Tray
Ingredients
- 1 ½ Cups Butter at Room Temperature , salted
- ¾ Cup Confectioners' Sugar
- 2 ¼ Cups All Purpose Flour
- ¾ Cup Cornstarch
Flavorings and Toppings: (optional but delish)
- 2 teaspoon Pure vanilla extract or Lemon extract or Orange extract
- ¼ Cup Sprinkles (of choice) (I used non-pareils)
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl beat butter and confectioners' sugar for 3-4 minutes. Don't skimp on the beating time for light textured cookies. Add flavorings at this point (if adding) and give it a whirl too.
- Next add in sifted flour and cornstarch in the bowl and beat only till combined.
- Scoop and roll into 36 equal sized cookie balls. Place cookie dough balls on a pre-lined baking tray or on a large plate (coated with little flour) to avoid the dough balls from sticking to the plate. Press their tops with a cornstarch/flour dipped fork and top with sprinkles.
- Now chill the dough balls for about 2 hours in fridge or till they are very firm to touch. Pro Tip: To speed up this process, you may chill the dough balls in freezer until firm.
- Let dough balls chill in the fridge/freezer till you preheat the oven. I usually bake 12 cookies on a tray at a time.
- When ready to bake preheat oven at 300 deg F and bake cookies for 19-20 minutes. Or till their tops look set.
- Allow to cool on the baking tray.
Video
Notes
- Both baked and unbaked cookies can be stored in the freezer.Â
- To freeze unbaked cookie balls, keep the balls on a tray in freezer till they firm up. Store them in ziploc bag then. No need to thaw before baking. Just add a minute more to the baking time.
- Baked cookies can be stored in an airtight freezer friendly container for up to 2 months. Thaw the cookies before serving.
- Top the cookies off with melted chocolate or a Hershey's Kiss on every cookie or even Candy cane Kisses taste so good with these. To top cookies with kiss candy, freeze the candies first. This will prevent kisses from melting when they are put on those warm cookies. Place a candy kiss on the top of a slightly warm cookie and press the candy just so it sticks to the shortbread.
- Place a cherry in their center.
- Make a dent in the center of cookies and fill it with jams and preserves of your choice before baking.
Anonymous
Melts in your mouth! Yummy!
Catherine Ryan
Do you measure the flour and cornstarch before or after sifting it?
GreedyEats
I usually measure my flours before sifting. I fluff my flour first, then use scoop and sweep method. Employing a kitchen scale takes out the guess work too.
Krista
I froze/chilled the dough as instructed by my cookies got REALLY flat in the oven. Any tips?
GreedyEats
There is a chance that you did not add enough flour and or cornstarch. Otherwise with so much cornstarch in a recipe, it's unlikely for cookies to spread or flatten while baking. I recommend a kitchen scale you try these next time. 🙂
Sharon
Can i refrigerate overnight? If so should i change the process at all?
GreedyEats
Yes, you can! Just take the dough out of refrigerator few minutes before you are ready to roll them and you will be good.
Ylli
Can we use any kind of frosting to coat them?
GreedyEats
Yes, I don't see why not. Since the cookies are not very sweet, frosting will work well here.
Vickie
If weighing the flour how much do I use?
GreedyEats
70 gms.
Karen
Can you sub the flour for coconut flour or almond flour?
GreedyEats
Sorry never tried it this way, so can't comment on it.
Mary C
Can the dough be used in a cookie press?
GreedyEats
Never tried this dough in a cookie press. Let me know if you get a chance to do so! 🙂
Mary Ann
Can I use unsalted butter?
GreedyEats
Sure can! Add a pinch of salt for better flavor in that case.
Edna
So delicious and simple to make. Thanks for the recipe and I’ll be making another batch tomorrow for coworkers.
Larissa
How many cookies does this make?
GreedyEats
12 small and 9 medium sized ones.
Donna Phillips
I'm making these now but also making a hot cocoa cocoa icing to top then off with sprinkles
Aleta
The five stars are mainly for Neha. I have read many comments from many members to other people who posted recipes (cookies & other food). Most of the "cooks/bakers/chefs" will reply to one or two comments and most times in a "blanket" style answer that doesn't help. YOU, Neha, have answered every comment more efficiently than anyone else I have ever read. You go beyond just a general answer but explain things so one does not get confused even more. (Example is about adding a flavored extract and how much. You broke it down with: "1/2 a tsp of almond extract would be good to flavor these. A combination of almond and vanilla extracts work beautifully too. Try 1/4 tsp almond and 1/2 tsp vanilla." Instead of a person just adding 1/2 of each kind that might be too much liquid.) Anyway, just wanted to say thank you for your caring about your followers. btw...these are delicious! 🙂
GreedyEats
Thanks you for such a sweet comment Aleta, you made my day! <3 I am happy these cookies turned out good for you. 🙂
Janis
Can this recipe be doubled? Thanks
GreedyEats
Sure It can also be tripled at ease. 😉
Stacy
Can you make this ahead and freeze it until baking time?
GreedyEats
Of course you can Stacy. Make cookie dough balls and freeze them, no need to thaw. Just bake them for a min longer. Happy Baking!
Karen Howard
Cant wait to try these. I also bake the Snowballs which is basically the same thing w/more ingredients minus cornstarch & don't flatten & roll in c. sugar at the end. I'm going to try that with 1 to see if it comes out ok, maybe bake 1-2 min. longer.
Tess
My dough went out so hard and i can’t roll it into small cookie balls so i thaw it. Did i chill it too long?instructions says 2 hrs. What did I do wrong?
GreedyEats
Dough shouldn't be hard at all Tess. Looks like you added too much flour. Measure it well and you will be able to roll them.
RBW
My dough is very crumbly after chilling. It’s hard to roll into a ball and when I press lightly with a fork it crumbles again. What did I do wrong?
GreedyEats
Hi! Looks like you have added too much flour. Try adding a little milk to make the dough manageable. Just be careful not to add too much.
Karla
Have you ever added almond extract to these? And is so? Did you have to make adaptations to the recipe?
GreedyEats
Oh yes I have. I have also tried these with vanilla extract and jam filling. All of them taste great and nope, no other substitutions are needed.
Donna
How much almond can be added?
GreedyEats
1/2 a tsp of almond extract would be good to flavor these. A combination of almond and vanilla extracts work beautifully too. Try 1/4 tsp almond and 1/2 tsp vanilla.
Dan
Hi! How did you fill these?
Mary
So I whipped up the dough for these cookies and after refrigerating for 2 hours all I still had was powder that would barely stick together. What did I do wrong?
GreedyEats
Dough should def stick together, even before chilling. Looks like you have added too much flour or cornstarch. To avoid this, use fluff scoop level method to measure out flour.
Bev
They came out perfect!! Made these especially for my 3 yr old grandson. He loved them. Easiest little bundle of yum!
Sue
Hi. I have a quick question. The dough is now in the refrigerator for the next two hours. The question I have is: can you omit sprinkles and use powdered sugar on top or is that not a good idea? This is my first time making these kinds of cookies so I don’t want to make a mistake! Thank you!
GreedyEats
Hi Sue! You can omit sprinkles if you like. But you don't want to roll them into powdered sugar before baking, if you desire you can do so after the cookies are out of oven and still warm.
Catherine Childers
I have looked for this recipe for years! Learned how to make them in Jr. High cooking class.
Thay are "The Best" cookies ever!
Sooo soft and buttery. We would also use for thumbprint cookies with jam in the middle.
Thank you for sharing😊
Making my tastebuds do a 💃 dance!