Description
Delightfully tender and buttery, these Whipped Shortbread Cookies are a classic treat that melt in your mouth. Made with simple ingredients like unsalted butter, confectioners’ sugar, and vanilla, they feature a light, crumbly texture thanks to a unique whipped dough technique. Perfect for holiday gatherings or everyday indulgence, these cookies can be decorated with festive sprinkles for a cheerful touch.
Ingredients
Scale
Cookie Dough
- 1 cup unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- ½ cup confectioners’ sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract (or almond extract) (optional)
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
Topping
- 2-3 tablespoons Christmas sprinkles
Instructions
- Preheat and Prepare Baking Sheets: Preheat your oven to 300°F (150°C). Line two large half-sheet baking pans with parchment paper or silicone baking mats to ensure the cookies don’t stick during baking.
- Cream Butter and Sugar: In a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment or a large mixing bowl with a hand mixer, beat the softened unsalted butter and confectioners’ sugar together on medium speed for 3-4 minutes. Continue until the mixture is light, fluffy, and pale in color.
- Add Vanilla Extract: Incorporate the vanilla or almond extract into the butter-sugar mixture and beat until fully combined.
- Mix Dry Ingredients: In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour and cornstarch until evenly blended. Gradually add these dry ingredients to the wet mixture, beating on low speed just until combined.
- Beat to Breadcrumb Texture: Increase the mixer speed to high and beat the dough for 1 minute until it resembles coarse breadcrumbs and is less dry. The dough should be easily shaped into balls by hand.
- Shape Cookies: Using a cookie scoop or spoon, portion out about 1 tablespoon of dough each. Roll each portion into a 1-inch ball and place them on the prepared baking sheets with about 1.5 inches spacing. You should fit roughly 12 cookies on each sheet.
- Press Tops and Add Sprinkles: Dip a fork lightly into flour or cornstarch to prevent sticking and gently press down the tops of each cookie to create linear indentations. Sprinkle the cookies with 2-3 tablespoons of Christmas sprinkles for a festive look.
- Bake: Bake the cookies for 20 minutes, or until the tops look set and the bottoms are just beginning to turn golden brown.
- Cool Carefully: Let the cookies rest on the baking sheets for 5 minutes after removing from the oven. Then, very carefully transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely, as they are fragile when warm.
Notes
- Storage: Once cooled, store cookies in an airtight container lined with parchment paper or in large Ziploc bags at room temperature for up to 7 days. Using mini cupcake liners in a single layer with parchment paper between layers helps protect sprinkles from falling off.
- Freezing Cookies: Freeze baked cookies in an airtight container layered between sheets of parchment paper for up to 3 months.
- Storing Cookie Dough: Shape the dough into a ball or disc, wrap tightly with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for up to 3 days. Let it return to room temperature (20-30 minutes) before shaping into cookies.
- Freezing Dough: Dough can also be frozen wrapped in plastic and stored in a freezer bag or container for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and bring to room temperature before shaping.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cookie
- Calories: 110
- Sugar: 5g
- Sodium: 30mg
- Fat: 7g
- Saturated Fat: 4.5g
- Unsaturated Fat: 2g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 11g
- Fiber: 0.3g
- Protein: 1g
- Cholesterol: 20mg
