Christmas Shortbread Cookies are the perfect way to deliver holiday cheer. These buttery shortbread cookies are topped with melted white chocolate and holiday sprinkles. They’re easy to make and great for sharing. While I love making our delicious cut...

Christmas Shortbread Cookies are the perfect way to deliver holiday cheer. These buttery shortbread cookies are topped with melted white chocolate and holiday sprinkles. They’re easy to make and great for sharing.

While I love making our delicious cut out sugar cookies, homemade shortbread cookies are a delicious alternative!

Why Bake Christmas Shortbread Cookies

I’m an equal-opportunity cookie eater, but when it comes to the holiday season, I’ve found that many people gravitate toward thick and heavy treats.

I created these Christmas shortbread cookies based off our delicious vanilla bean shortbread recipe.

They’ll melt in your mouth. The key ingredient is butter. It makes the cookies exceptionally soft and crumbly. They’re great for sharing. Cookies are always the perfect shareable, and over the holidays, this is doubly true if you’re watching your wallet. In my experience, these cookies offer a unique and contrasting texture to what the neighbors are baking. One bowl recipe. The cookie dough comes together in one bowl..and we all know what that means. Clean-up is a cakewalk!

Ingredient Notes 

Butter – Use good quality unsalted butter, as shortbread needs a lot of it. A tip to remember while buying butter for baking is that it should have at least 82% fat content for the best results. Powdered Sugar – Using powdered sugar gives the shortbread a crumbly consistency. Alternatively, you can use granulated sugar to make your cookies slightly sturdier and tougher. Vanilla Bean Paste  Flour – All-purpose flour works best for this recipe and gives a soft bite to the shortbread. Kosher Salt White Chocolate – I prefer Ghirardelli wafters, which are easy to melt and handle. You can also use vanilla almond bark for some extra crunch.  Sprinkles – Holiday sprinkles are perfect for the Christmas theme. You can also use other colors or shapes of sprinkles.

Easy Instructions

Mix the dough. Cream butter and sugar in a bowl. Then add vanilla, followed by flour and salt. Mix it into a doughy consistency. Roll and shape the cookies. Roll the dough into a 12-inch log and wrap it in plastic wrap. Then refrigerate it for 30 minutes. Slice the dough into thin slices and place on a lined baking tray. Bake, cool, and top. Bake for 12-14 minutes, and then allow the cookies to cool completely before topping. Then spread melted vanilla bark, add sprinkles, and let it set.

Tips and Tricks 

Try adding orange zest to the cookie dough. If you find shortbread cookies too sweet, add 1 tsp of orange zest to the cookie dough. It will cut through the sweetness of white chocolate really well. Don’t overmix the dough. Once you add the dry ingredients, mix until the dry ingredients are just combined. Over-mixing will lead to tough cookies. Make sure the cookies are completely cooled before you add the melted topping. Otherwise, it will run off. Swap nuts for sprinkles. Top the cookies with roasted and chopped hazelnuts, walnuts, or pecans to add texture instead of sprinkles. Chill the dough properly. Shortbread dough has a lot of butter in it. So if you don’t let it chill properly, the cookies will spread and lose their shape. They will also come out hard and crunchy instead of soft and crumbly.

Recipe FAQs 

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