The Ultimate Guide to Perfect Slice and Bake Shortbread Cookies

Discover the joy of crafting these exquisite shortbread slice and bake cookies, a timeless classic reinvented for modern convenience. Each cookie promises crisp, golden edges, a melt-in-your-mouth tender center, and a rich, buttery snap that defines true shortbread perfection. While our favorite version features a delightful medley of semi-sweet chocolate, crunchy pecans, and sweet-tart dried cherries, the beauty of this recipe lies in its boundless customization. Imagine a batch of pistachio shortbread cookies, or perhaps something entirely unique to your palate – the possibilities are endless! The simple process involves rolling the versatile dough into a log, chilling it until firm, then effortlessly slicing and baking to enjoy warm, homemade goodness.

These incredibly easy slice and bake cookies stand proudly among the most straightforward homemade treats you can whip up. Their convenience places them in the same league as other delightful recipes like cranberry pistachio biscotti, classic shortbread cutout cookies, festive Christmas tree cookies, and elegant shortbread cookie sticks. The adaptable shortbread cookie dough base can be kept wonderfully simple for a pure buttery flavor, or it can be elevated with an array of complex and exciting additions. This recipe is not only perfect for instant gratification when a cookie craving strikes, thanks to its freezer-friendly nature, but it also shines as an ideal choice for cookie exchanges and holiday baking. We are ardent lovers of all things shortbread, which is why we frequently incorporate this versatile base into a variety of desserts, including our indulgent apple crumble bars, comforting pumpkin pie bars, zesty rhubarb squares, and decadent caramel shortbread cookie bars. The possibilities are truly endless!

Why You’ll Adore This Easy Shortbread Cookie Recipe

If you’re searching for a cookie recipe that delivers on taste, convenience, and versatility, look no further. Our slice and bake shortbread cookies are designed to become your new go-to, offering several compelling reasons why they’ll earn a permanent spot in your baking repertoire:

• An Elevated Take on a Classic Treat: Forget the nostalgic but often overly sweet and less refined store-bought varieties. These buttery cookies represent an upscale, more sophisticated version of the packaged slice and bake cookies many of us enjoyed as children. The authentic shortbread dough base results in a significantly less sweet cookie than a typical sugar cookie, allowing the rich, pure butter flavor to shine through. Furthermore, the carefully balanced ingredients and chilling process contribute to an irresistibly crispier outer texture, providing a delightful contrast to the tender interior. It’s a grown-up cookie experience that’s both comforting and gourmet.
• Infinitely Customizable to Your Taste: The inherent simplicity of this shortbread dough is its greatest strength, serving as a blank canvas for your culinary imagination. While fantastic when baked plain, it truly transforms with the addition of your favorite mix-ins. From a variety of crunchy nuts, decadent chocolates, and chewy dried fruits to vibrant sprinkles, aromatic spices, fragrant extracts, and bright citrus zests, you can tailor every batch to perfectly suit your mood or occasion. We’ve dedicated an entire section to an extensive list of creative swaps and substitutions, empowering you to make these homemade shortbread cookies uniquely your own.
• The Perfect Cookie for Any Day, Any Occasion: Whether you’re craving a simple, comforting treat after a long day or need an impressive yet easy dessert for a special event, these slice and bake cookies fit the bill. They are truly the perfect everyday cookie, always ready to deliver a moment of bliss. Beyond daily indulgence, their adaptability makes them a phenomenal choice for festive occasions, easily transforming into a beautiful Christmas cookie or any holiday-themed treat. Feeling like a rich chocolate and earthy pistachio combination today? Absolutely! Want to add playful red and green sprinkles for Christmas? Wonderful! This recipe encourages you to express your creativity and bake exactly what you desire, whenever you desire.

Essential Ingredients for Buttery Shortbread

Crafting exceptional shortbread cookies begins with a selection of quality ingredients. Here’s a closer look at the key components that bring our slice and bake shortbread to life:

• Unsalted Butter: The star of any shortbread recipe! We recommend using two sticks (1 cup) of unsalted butter, brought to a very soft room temperature. The quality of your butter significantly impacts the final taste and texture of these cookies, so this is an area where a small splurge truly makes a difference. Opt for European-style butters like Plugra or Kerrygold for their higher fat content and superior flavor. Ensure it’s unsalted to control the overall saltiness of your cookies.
• Granulated Sugar: Provides sweetness and helps create those coveted crisp edges. We use ¾ cup for a balanced sweetness that complements, rather than overwhelms, the butter’s richness.
• All-Purpose Flour: The structural foundation of our shortbread. We call for 2¼ cups, measured correctly (see expert tips) to ensure the perfect crumb.
• Cornstarch: A secret ingredient for achieving that ideal shortbread texture. A mere ¼ cup of cornstarch helps to tenderize the dough, giving the cookies a satisfying snap on the outside followed by a wonderfully tender bite within.
• Egg Yolk: One large egg yolk is incorporated into this recipe to add richness, improve the dough’s workability, and contribute to a slightly chewier, more cohesive texture without making the cookies cakey. It helps bind the dough together, especially when incorporating mix-ins.
• Kosher Salt: Enhances all the flavors, balancing the sweetness and richness. ½ teaspoon is typically ideal for Diamond Crystal kosher salt (adjust if using other types – see our cooking notes below).
• Vanilla Extract: A teaspoon of pure vanilla extract adds a warm, classic aroma and depth of flavor that complements the buttery goodness.
• Mix-ins: For our recommended variation, we use ⅓ cup each of roughly chopped pecans, semi-sweet chocolate (~60-70% cacao) for a delightful bittersweet note, and dried cherries or cranberries for a pop of fruity chewiness and color. These are just suggestions, providing a perfect balance of texture and flavor, but feel free to explore other combinations as detailed in the variations section.

Please refer to the complete recipe card below for the full list of ingredients and precise quantities.

Unleash Your Creativity: Substitutions and Variations

One of the most exciting aspects of this slice and bake shortbread recipe is its incredible adaptability. You have the freedom to customize these cookies with an astonishing array of flavors and textures, making each batch a unique creation. As a general guideline, aim for up to 1 cup total of various solid mix-ins (this includes fruits, nuts, and chocolates, but excludes zests, spices, extracts, or sprinkles, which are added directly to the dough). Feel free to combine any of the following options to craft your ultimate flavor masterpiece:

• Nuts: Introduce a delightful crunch and nutty flavor with chopped walnuts, pistachios (for a beautiful green hue and distinct taste), classic pecans, elegant almonds, or buttery macadamia nuts. Toasting them lightly before adding can enhance their flavor even further.
• Chocolate: Indulge your chocolate cravings with different types of chocolate! Experiment with white chocolate chips for a creamy sweetness, dark chocolate chunks for rich intensity, or milk chocolate pieces for a classic, comforting flavor. You could even combine all three for a multi-faceted chocolate experience.
• Dried Fruit: Add chewiness, natural sweetness, and vibrant color with a variety of dried fruits. Consider sweet apricots, tart dried cherries (our personal favorite), tangy cranberries, exotic dried mango, or rich dates. Roughly chopping larger fruits ensures even distribution in the dough.
• Citrus Zest: Infuse your cookies with bright, aromatic notes using up to ¼ cup of finely grated orange, lemon, or lime zest. We often find that 2-3 tablespoons provide plenty of vibrant flavor without overwhelming the shortbread. For maximum flavor impact, rub the zest directly into the granulated sugar before creaming it with the butter. This simple technique releases the essential oils, intensifying the citrus aroma throughout the cookie.
• Warm Spices: Introduce comforting warmth with up to 1 teaspoon of your favorite ground spices. Cinnamon adds classic warmth, cardamom offers an exotic floral note, allspice brings a complex blend, nutmeg provides sweet earthiness, and apple or pumpkin pie spice blends are perfect for seasonal variations.
• Flavorful Extracts: Transform the entire character of your dough with just 1 teaspoon of extract. Lemon extract brightens, orange extract adds a sweet citrus note, coconut extract lends a tropical twist, and almond extract provides a sophisticated, nutty aroma. These are fantastic for creating fun and unexpected variations.
• Decorative Edge Roll: For an extra touch of elegance and texture, roll the sides of your formed dough log in coarse sugar (like turbinado or sparkling sugar) or your favorite festive sprinkles before chilling. This creates a beautiful, sparkling edge and adds a pleasant textural contrast to the baked cookie. This is particularly effective for holiday-themed cookies, such as incorporating red and green sprinkles for Christmas, orange and black for Halloween, or pastel colors for Easter.

With these suggestions, you’re empowered to experiment and create custom slice and bake shortbread cookies that are perfectly tailored to any occasion or personal preference.

Step One: Creaming the Foundation. In a large mixing bowl, preferably with a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment (or using a hand mixer), combine your very soft room temperature butter with the granulated sugar and vanilla extract. Beat this mixture on medium-high speed for approximately 4 minutes, or until it transforms into a visibly lighter, fluffy, and pale yellow consistency. This creaming process incorporates air, which is crucial for tender shortbread. Don’t forget to scrape down the sides of the bowl midway through to ensure everything is evenly combined.

Step Two: Adding the Egg Yolk and Flour. After creaming, add the single large egg yolk to the mixture and beat until it is fully incorporated, which usually takes about 30 seconds. Next, gradually add the pre-whisked flour, cornstarch, and salt mixture to the wet ingredients. Mix on low speed, just until the dry ingredients are *almost* fully combined. You should still see a few streaks of flour remaining; this prevents overmixing, which can lead to tough cookies.

Step Three: Incorporating Mix-ins. Now it’s time to personalize your shortbread! Add your chosen mix-ins – in our case, the chopped chocolate, pecans, and dried cherries – to the cookie dough. Using your hands or a sturdy spatula, gently fold these additions into the dough until they are evenly dispersed throughout the mixture and no dry streaks of flour are visible. Be careful not to overwork the dough at this stage, as excessive handling can develop gluten, making the cookies tough.

Step Four: Forming the Dough Log. Lay out a generous piece of plastic wrap on your clean counter. Transfer the entire cookie dough mixture onto the center of the plastic wrap. Using your clean hands, gently but firmly form the dough into a uniform log. Aim for a diameter of about 1.5 to 2 inches, or your desired cookie size. Once shaped, tightly wrap the dough in the plastic wrap. For an even more perfect cylindrical shape, roll the wrapped log back and forth on the counter a few times, applying gentle pressure to the ends to create a smooth, consistent cylinder. This initial shaping is key for perfectly round cookies.

Step Five: Secure Wrapping for Chilling. After forming and initially wrapping the dough, ensure it’s as tight as possible in the plastic wrap. Gently roll the log a few more times on the counter to eliminate any air pockets and further refine its cylindrical shape. Push in the sides to maintain a consistent diameter from end to end. This meticulous wrapping and shaping prior to chilling helps prevent the dough from developing flat spots and ensures uniformly round cookies once sliced.

Step Six: The Crucial Chilling Process. For the best results and perfectly round cookies, roll your tightly wrapped dough log in a clean dish towel or tea towel. This extra layer provides insulation and helps to evenly distribute pressure around the dough, further preventing a flat bottom from forming during chilling. Place the towel-wrapped log in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours. Ideally, chill it overnight. This extended chilling period is absolutely vital – it allows the butter to firm up completely, the flavors to meld, and the flour to fully hydrate, all contributing to those desirable crisp edges and a wonderfully tender interior when baked. The dough should be rock solid before you proceed to slicing.

Step Seven: Precise Slicing for Uniform Cookies. Once your dough log is perfectly chilled and ready, use a sharp, thin-bladed knife to cut it into ½-inch thick medallions. Remember the “push down quickly and forcefully” technique described above, rather than sawing. This method is crucial for clean cuts, especially with those delightful mix-ins. Periodically rotate the log as you slice to keep its shape as round as possible.

Step Eight: Bake to Golden Perfection. Arrange the freshly sliced cookie dough medallions on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Ensure you leave adequate space between each cookie – typically 9-12 cookies per standard baking sheet is ideal to prevent them from merging as they bake. Transfer to your preheated oven and bake until the edges are lightly golden and the centers are set but still look slightly soft. The cookies will spread very slightly while baking, so for those coveted perfectly round cookies, we like to gently “scoot” the cookies into shape using a large round cookie cutter or the back of a spoon at the 10-minute mark, and again immediately after they come out of the oven.

Allow the baked cookies to cool on the baking sheet for about 5 minutes before carefully transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely. This brief cooling period on the hot pan helps them firm up and prevents breakage.

Expert Baking Tips for Flawless Shortbread

Elevate your shortbread baking from good to extraordinary with these invaluable expert tips:

• Butter Temperature is Key: Always use unsalted butter that is at true room temperature, or even slightly softer. This means it should yield easily when gently pressed but not be greasy or melted. Properly softened butter creams beautifully with sugar, incorporating enough air to create a tender, light dough that combines nicely without overworking.
• Accurate Flour Measurement: Measuring flour accurately is paramount for shortbread. Too much flour will result in a dry, crumbly dough that is difficult to form and will produce dry, tough cookies. We highly recommend using a digital scale for the most precise results. If you don’t have a scale, use the “fluff, scoop, and level” method: gently fluff the flour in its container, then lightly spoon it into your measuring cup until it overflows, and finally, level off the excess with a straight edge without packing it down.
• Preventing Flat Bottoms During Chilling: To ensure your cookie dough log remains perfectly round and doesn’t develop a flat side from resting on a cold shelf, roll the wrapped log snugly in a clean tea towel before placing it in the refrigerator. The towel provides a soft, cushioned barrier, allowing the dough to firm up evenly from all sides.
• Do Not Skip the Chilling Process!: This step is non-negotiable for superior slice and bake shortbread. Chilling the dough for a minimum of 4 hours (overnight is ideal) serves multiple critical functions: it firms up the butter, prevents excessive spreading during baking, allows the flour to fully hydrate (leading to a tender crumb), and enables the flavors to meld beautifully. The dough log should be genuinely rock solid when you’re ready to slice – if it’s still soft, extend the chilling time.
• Reshape if Needed After Cutting: Even with the best technique, some cookie slices might get a little squished or slightly misshapen during the cutting process, especially with larger mix-ins. Don’t fret! Simply use your fingers to gently push in the sides of each dough slice to round them back up before placing them on the baking sheet. They’ll bake up beautifully.
• The “Scooting” Trick: For perfectly round cookies, use a large round cookie cutter (just slightly larger than your baked cookie) or the back of a spoon to gently “scoot” the cookies immediately after removing them from the oven. While still hot and pliable, you can nudge the edges inwards to create a flawless circular shape.

Recipe FAQs: Frequently Asked Questions

Storage Tips for Fresh Shortbread Cookies

Proper storage ensures your delicious slice and bake shortbread cookies remain fresh and delightful for as long as possible:

• Storing Baked Cookies: Once completely cooled, store the baked cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4-5 days. To maintain their crispness, you can place a piece of parchment paper between layers of cookies.
• Freezing Cookie Dough: This recipe is perfect for make-ahead baking. The shortbread cookie dough can be frozen in two convenient forms:
  • Log Form: Wrap the entire dough log tightly in plastic wrap, then an additional layer of aluminum foil, and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight before slicing and baking.
  • Sliced & Flash Frozen: For ultimate convenience, slice the chilled dough log into individual medallions. Arrange these slices on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and flash freeze until solid (about 30-60 minutes). Once frozen, transfer the solid cookie discs to a zip-top freezer bag or an airtight container. Store for up to 3 months. You can bake these directly from frozen – no need to thaw! Just add a couple of extra minutes to the baking time.

More Delicious Cookie Recipes You’ll Love

If you enjoyed making and devouring these slice and bake shortbreads, you’ll surely love exploring our other delightful cookie creations:

Important Notes When Baking with The Cozy Plum

• Salt Type Matters: All recipes from The Cozy Plum are developed using Diamond Crystal kosher salt, which is known for being the least salty variety of kosher salt. If you choose to use Morton’s kosher salt or sea salt, you will need to reduce the amount of salt by half, as these are approximately twice as salty. Please avoid using standard table salt, as it has a much finer grain and more intense saltiness, which can significantly alter the flavor profile of your baked goods.
• Precision with Measuring: While our recipe card provides measurements in both US Customary and Metric systems, we highly recommend baking by weight using a digital kitchen scale. This method consistently yields the most accurate and reliable results, ensuring your cookies turn out perfectly every time.
• Scaling Recipes: To adjust the yield of this recipe, refer to the “1X,” “2X,” or “3X” buttons typically found on our recipe cards (in this case, see the recipe details below). Please note that while quantities will be adjusted, baking times may vary slightly and will need to be monitored.
• Pan Size Adjustments: If you wish to bake this recipe in a different sized pan than specified, you can utilize a pan size converter tool to make the necessary ingredient adjustments.

Slice and Bake Shortbread Cookies

By Callan Wenner

These slice-and-bake shortbread cookies feature crisp edges and a tender, buttery snap, filled with chocolate, pecans, and dried cherries. You can easily customize them with your favorite flavors and mix-ins. Just roll the dough into a log, refrigerate until firm, then slice and bake!