Brown Butter Shortbread (2024)

by Annalise Sandbergon Nov 28, 2023

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5 from 1 review

4 ingredients is all you need to make this incredibly rich, tender, and flavorful brown butter shortbread. These easy, press-in-the-pan cookies prove that sometimes simple really is best! Serve these delicious cookies during the holiday season, or any time of the year.

During the holidays I like to find and create new baked treats to share, of course, but I also really enjoy revisiting the classics. Last weekend I was craving some good old fashioned shortbread cookies, but with a brown butter twist.

Browning the butter before using it in this shortbread is a small extra step with big impact, and it turns this classic into something really special. These cookies have a rich, nutty and caramelized flavor and aroma. They’re simply irresistible!

And baking them in a square pan means there’s no chilling or rolling required. Simply press the dough into the pan and bake! Enjoy these brown butter shortbread cookies as is, or add toppings such as melted chocolate, sanding sugar, and even sprinkles.

What is shortbread?
Ingredients you’ll need
How to make brown butter shortbread
Variations and mix-ins
Tips for this recipe
More shortbread cookie recipes
Get the recipe

What is shortbread?

Classic shortbread is a cookie-like treat made primarily with butter, sugar and flour. It is only slightly sweet and gets most of its flavor from the butter, which is why it’s important to use quality butter (and it’s also why using browned butter has such big effect in this recipe).

Shortbread does not contain any leavening,such as baking powder or baking soda,which gives it its dense and crumbly texture. It’s slightly crisp when you bite into it, but then almost melts on your tongue afterward.

Shortbread is very versatile and you’ll see it in a wide variety of shapes and flavors, with different ingredients mixed in or added on top

Let’s bake a batch, shall we?

Ingredients you’ll need

Salted butter— Starting with salted butter means you’re already starting with big flavor.
All-purpose flour— Are you measuring your flour correctly? All of my recipes have been developed using the “spoon and level” method.
Powdered sugar— (aka confectioner’s sugar) Used because it dissolves better into the shortbread dough, making for more tender cookies.
Vanilla extract— For additional flavor.
Optional toppings, like coarse sugar or chocolate.

baking tip:How to brown butter

Place a heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium-low heat.
Add butter to the pan and melt butter (cubing the butter first allows it to melt more evenly).
Once the butter is melted, it will start to foam. Stir frequently with a rubber spatula, scraping the bottom of the pan.
Continue to cook butter until you see brown specs (browned milk solids) in the butter and it has a nutty aroma. Keep a close watch so it doesn’t burn!
Remove from heat and immediately pour it into another dish to stop the cooking.
Use the browned butter right away or put in the fridge for later use.

More Baking Tips »

How to make brown butter shortbread

Brown butter & cool to room temperature. Put it in the refrigerator for 15-20 minutes or until it has solidified. You don’t want it to be liquid at all, but it should still be somewhat soft.If it hardens completely in the fridge, let it sit at room temperature for a bit to soften.
Make shortbread cookie dough. Use an electric mixer to beat the butter together with the powdered sugar on high speed until light and creamy. Add vanilla extract, then the flour and mix on low speed until a crumbly dough mixture forms.
Press into 8-inch pan, score & dock. Dump the dough into a greased pan and use your fingers to press it into an even layer. Use a sharp knife to score the dough with lines we’ll later use to slice the baked cookies. Then use a fork or toothpick to dock the dough with holes.These holes create vents for steam created while baking and prevent the cookie from puffing up.
Bake. Bake the shortbread in a 300°F oven until the edges just start to brown.Do not overbake or you’ll lose the tender texture and cookies will be very hard.
Cut slices while warm, then cool completely. While the cookies are still hot from the oven and still in the pan, retrace the scored lines again with your knife to slice the cookies.If you wait till the cookies are cool, they will be too crisp to cut evenly. Once cut, let the shortbread cool completely in the pan.
Add toppings, if you want. Remove shortbread from the pan and enjoy as is, or top with a drizzle of melted chocolate or a sprinkle of sanding sugar or flaky sea salt.

Variations and mix-ins

As I’ve already mentioned, shortbread is very adaptable! And while I prefer this simple brown butter shortbread as is, you are welcome to add additional flavors and mix-ins if you’d like.

A few suggestions include orange or lemon zest, cinnamon or other spices, almond or rum extract, chopped nuts, mini chocolate chips or chopped dried fruit.

Tips for this recipe

Line the baking pan with parchment paper to ensure the shortbread does not stick to the pan.
If you only have unsalted butter, add 1/2 teaspoon of salt to the mixing bowl along with the all-purpose flour.
Don’t over bake! Bake the shortbread only until the edges start to brown but the rest of the cookies are still pale. It will finish setting up in the pan as it cools. If you overbake the shortbread, it will be too hard and crunchy, not soft and tender.
The brown butter can be prepared in advance and stored in the fridge for several weeks until ready to use. Let it come to room temperature for 30-60 minutes before using.
Shortbread keeps very well and lasts for quite a while. Store it at room temperature in an airtight container for 1-2 weeks, or freeze it for a month or more.

More shortbread cookie recipes

Get the recipe

This recipe was originally published December 2012.

5 from 1 review

Brown Butter Shortbread

Servings: 32 cookies

Prep Time: 10 minutes mins

Cook Time: 35 minutes mins

Total Time: 45 minutes mins

4ingredientsis all you need to make this rich, tender, and flavorful brown butter shortbread.

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Ingredients

▢ 8 ounces salted butter , cut into cubes (225 grams)
▢ ¾ cup powdered sugar , sifted (85 grams)
▢ ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
▢ 2 cups all-purpose flour (250 grams)
▢ Sanding sugar , for dusting (optional)
▢ Dark chocolate , melted for drizzle (optional)

Instructions

In a small saucepan, melt the butter over medium low heat. Continue to cook the butter until it turns deep golden brown, stirring and scraping the bottom of the pan often. Watch it carefully to make sure it doesn't burn. Pour the butter into a bowl and chill until solidified.
Preheat oven to 300°F and grease a 8-inch square pan and line with parchment paper if you want.
Remove the butter from the fridge and let it come back to room temperature. Cutting it into smaller pieces speeds this process up. You don't want it to be liquid at all, but it should still be soft.
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter until smooth and powdered sugar on medium high speed until light and fluffy. Add the vanilla extract. Add the flour and mix until just combined to make a crumbly dough.
Press the dough into the prepared pan. Use a knife to cut dough into 16 squares, and then cut each square in half so you have 32 small rectangles total. Prick the dough with a toothpick or fork (this will keep it from puffing up during baking).
Bake until edges have turned lightly golden brown, about 35-40 minutes. Use a knife to re-cut the shortbread while it's still hot and soft (if you wait till it's cooled, it will not slice well). Let cool completely in pan.
If desired, top with sanding sugar or a drizzle of melted chocolate.
Store shortbread at room temperature in an airtight container for several days.

Notes

For best results, use a high quality butter. If using unsalted butter, at 1/2 teaspoon salt along with the flour.
Recipe adapted from Martha Stewart.

Calories: 90kcal, Carbohydrates: 9g, Protein: 1g, Fat: 6g, Saturated Fat: 4g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.2g, Monounsaturated Fat: 1g, Trans Fat: 0.2g, Cholesterol: 15mg, Sodium: 46mg, Potassium: 10mg, Fiber: 0.2g, Sugar: 3g, Vitamin A: 177IU, Calcium: 3mg, Iron: 0.4mg

Cuisine: American

Course: Dessert

Author: Annalise Sandberg

Have you tried this recipe?I’d love to hear about it! Leave a rating and review below, or take a photo and tag it on Instagram @completelydelicious with #completelydelicious.

Salted butter— Starting with salted butter means you’re already starting with big flavor.
All-purpose flour— Are you measuring your flour correctly? All of my recipes have been developed using the “spoon and level” method.
Powdered sugar— (aka confectioner’s sugar) Used because it dissolved better into the shortbread dough, making for more tender cookies.
Vanilla extract— For additional flavor.
Optional toppings, like coarse sugar or chocolate

Christmas Cookies

published on Nov 28, 2023

28 comments Leave a comment »

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28 comments on “Brown Butter Shortbread”

kelley {mountain mama cooks} — December 14, 2012 @ 7:35 am Reply
These look amazing. I buy Kerrygold as Costco in a three pack. It’s my favorite for spreading on toast in the morning…..I’m not afraid of a little butter fat. 🙂
Cassie | Bake Your Day — December 14, 2012 @ 9:30 am Reply
Shortbread is the best…I can only imagine the flavor of this!

See Also
Soft and Gooey Loaded Peanut Butter Cookies
Loretta | A Finn In The Kitchen — December 14, 2012 @ 11:50 am Reply
I love Kerrygold butter! It has amazing flavor and grassfed butter is full of GOOD fats!
Thanks for the reminder to keep my eye out for it!
Jocelyn — December 14, 2012 @ 1:08 pm Reply
I am very eager to try this delicious looking shortbread. However, I do not have a fluted tart pan. Can you please recommend some alternate baking dishes? Thank you so much!
- Annalise — December 14, 2012 @ 6:46 pm Reply
  Jocelyn, you can use an 8 or 9-inch round pan. I would just line it with greased foil or parchment paper so that you can lift it out of the pan after it cools without needing to cut it.
Katrina @ Warm Vanilla Sugar — December 15, 2012 @ 4:25 am Reply
I LOVE this! This shortbread looks fabulous!
Christina Main — December 20, 2012 @ 10:32 am Reply
I just posted a cookie blog using Kerrygold butter and raved and raved about it! It’s one of my top butters ever!
Jennifer — November 30, 2013 @ 1:14 pm Reply
This is most certainly not an original take on shortbread. Our family has been making it this way for 50 years. I’m sure they were making it 50 years before us!! It’s delicious but please don’t insinuate that it is your idea or cutting edge spin
- Annalise — December 1, 2013 @ 8:10 am Reply
  I wish my family had been making brown butter shortbread for 50 years, yum! It was a fun and new twist for me, of course I realize I didn’t invent the idea.
  - KP — December 10, 2013 @ 7:51 pm
    Annaliese…I stumbled upon your site while in search of a brown butter shortbread recipe. From this one response I can already tell that you just might be one of the classiest food bloggers out there ; )
    Cheers!
  - Annalise — December 10, 2013 @ 8:48 pm
    Thanks! 🙂
  - Lisa Owen — December 10, 2017 @ 2:34 pm
    Great response! ????????
- Melissa Kennedy — December 15, 2015 @ 12:11 pm Reply
  Wow who cares. Merry Christmas.
Carlotta — January 24, 2014 @ 1:24 pm Reply
Love these shortbread… Your receipes are a certainty!! I’ve just made with cocoa… W-o-n-d-e-r-f-u-l.
Thanks.
Carlotta
Taylor — December 21, 2015 @ 7:27 am Reply
Hello,
I was wondering if you think these cookies would lend themselves well to being cut outs? Would you need to make any adjustments to the recipe?
- Annalise — December 23, 2015 @ 9:18 am Reply
  The high amount of butter may make them spread and lose their shape during baking. But it might work it you chill it enough. Never tried it so I can’t say for sure! I bet you can find a brown butter sugar cookie to use if you search the web.
Lee — December 22, 2015 @ 8:44 pm Reply
I made them but didn’t have a tart pan so I shaped the dough into a rectangle on a parchment covered cookie sheet and scored triangles. Soooooooo rich and yummy! Really decadent. So glad I made them.
- Annalise — December 23, 2015 @ 9:21 am Reply
  Thanks for the comment Lee, so happy to hear you enjoyed the cookies!
Suzette — January 1, 2017 @ 3:28 pm Reply
Warning to those who may try this recipe. It is based on a recipe using regular butter, which is usually about 80-82% water. (Kerrygold is 83%.) When you brown the butter, the moisture is all evaporates. This results in a crumbly dough and a cookie that tastes like flour. Take my advice and replace the missing moisture with a couple of tablespoons of milk or water. I threw out my first batch, tried it again with milk, and came up with a normal shortbread dough and an edible cookie. I also cooked it more like a half hour, since the first batch was hard as a rock in the center.
Suzette — January 1, 2017 @ 6:19 pm Reply
Whoops! I looked at the above comment–AFTER I sent it–and noticed a huge mistake. Butters are 80-82% FAT. The rest is moisture. Sorry to all.
Emily — January 21, 2017 @ 4:10 am Reply
I love this cookie! I love this recipe! Thank you so very much! I have made it many times now! One batch will last me, and me alone (as I don’t wish to share it!) about a week or less! I bake it in a nine inch round glass bowl with a flat bottom. I have a lid for this container and do not remove it from the container unless to eat a piece. Again, just fantastic! I have shared this recipe with others. Some just see it as an odd old lady cookie (I’m in my twenties), and even though it doesn’t have loads of chocolate as I would normally use, it is perhaps my favorite cookie! I recommend trying it. The hardest part is mixing up the butter, after it has been browned and cooled, if you do it by hand. Enjoy!
Marquita Sozio — December 5, 2017 @ 7:24 pm Reply
I like Kerry gold butter know but Plugra is much better! Wal-Mart used to carry it but now I find it at the “Safeway” stores, I. E. TOM THUMB, ALBERTSONS, ETC. It has that real European butter taste to it that we crave. Great for eating on bread as well. It has a much richer flavor.
Kathi — November 2, 2019 @ 1:40 pm Reply
Hi, I’m curious about the mixing part of this recipe. I don’t have the mixer with a paddle, I just have a hand mixer with 2 beaters. Will this work for this recipe? Any further advice I need with using beaters? Thank you for your time, this recipe sounds delicious!!
- Annalise — November 4, 2019 @ 2:23 pm Reply
  Yes, a standard hand mixer should work fine. The paddle attachment is the best for creaming butter and sugar together, but it’s not necessary! 🙂
Nikki — December 24, 2022 @ 5:12 pm Reply
I added orange zest and cardamom with the Kerrygold. Delicious recipe!
Deutsche Küche — March 29, 2023 @ 11:07 am Reply
I am wanting to make this recipe and was comparing it to another (I use the metric measurements). The recipe states “¾ cup powdered sugar , sifted (175 grams)”. One is half the amount or double the other.
3/4 cup powdered sugar = 93.75 grams or 112 grams depending on converter used
175 g powdered sugar = 1.56 ( ~ 1 1/2) US cups
(175 grams of water is equivalent to 0.74 ( ~ 3/4) US cup)
What amount of cups or grams of powdered sugar should I use? (Thank you for listing both amounts.)
- Annalise — April 5, 2023 @ 8:58 am Reply
  That is a great question, and likely I’ve made an error here somewhere. Go with the cup amount of 3/4 cup, which I now equate to about 113 grams. This is an old recipe and likely needs a revisit, and thank you for bringing it to my attention!
Cindy — November 5, 2023 @ 10:11 am Reply
After making the dough and putting it in the oven, I decided to read the comments.
I wish you’d updated the recipe to reflect the proper sugar gram weight of around 113 g instead of the 175 g that’s still there after you discovered the error back in April 2023 – I didn’t see that until I read the last comment.