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    Home » Recipes » Brown Butter Shortbread Cookies with Toffee

    Brown Butter Shortbread Cookies with Toffee

    Dec 18, 2018 · Modified: Sep 3, 2020 by Mackenzie Ryan · This post may contain affiliate links | Disclosure policy in footer.

    Jump to Recipe Print Recipe Save RecipeSaved!
    long image of shortbread cookies on cooling rack with title "Brown butter shortbread with toffee" on a green background

    Shortbread cookies are a quintessential holiday season treat. This easy shortbread cookie recipe is great for a cookie exchange or an evening indulgence. Make sure to make a double batch, though. They're that good!

    Five round shortbread cookies stacked in front of two jars of milk

    Shortbread cookies are a delectably crunchy and buttery cookie that is often associated with Christmastime. These lightly golden cookies practically melt in your mouth and are hard to put down.

    Do I Have to Make the Brown Butter for This Shortbread Cookie Recipe?

    The short answer is no. If you just want basic shortbread cookies with toffee, then follow the recipe using two sticks of butter. However, if you are willing to take the time to make the brown butter, it is absolutely worth the time. The brown butter adds a slight nuttiness to the cookies that perfectly complements the toffee. And since the brown butter has had most of its water content removed, it makes these shortbread cookies exceptionally velvety. (I like to pretend they’re a biscotti alternative and have them with coffee. Breakfast cookie, right?)

    Tips for Making Perfect Shortbread Cookies

    There is no real mastery of skills needed for this shortbread cookie recipe. However, any of these articles below will help you become the best baker you can be. In turn,  it will help your shortbread cookies turn out that much more amazing.

    • How To Brown Butter.  Since this is an essential part of this recipe, I recommend reading this. It explains everything about how to separate the dairy to how dark it should be.
    • Creaming Method.  This is the baking method used for this shortbread cookie recipe. It goes into detail about the order you add your ingredients and why this is important for success.
    Shortbread cookies on a cooling rack

    How To Store Shortbread Cookies

    Shortbread cookie dough is incredibly easy to store. In fact, it will stay fresh in the refrigerator or on the counter for three to five days.  Just make sure it is tightly sealed so it doesn’t dry out. Also, if you love these as much as I think you will, the recipe doubles easily. If you want to freeze some for another time, they will stay good for up to a month.

    Since you will most likely shape the dough before freezing, I recommend wrapping the dough in parchment paper before the plastic wrap. The parchment paper won’t stick to the dough, so it releases easier when you’re ready to cut them.

    Once your cookies are made, they will stay good in an airtight container for up to two weeks at room temperature. Since most of the water evaporates when you make the brown butter, the cookies are unlikely to go stale.

    How To Cut Shortbread Cookies

    I’m going to be honest with you. Cutting shortbread cookies isn’t a big deal if they’re refrigerated. Frozen shortbread cookie dough is a completely different story, though. Many recipes are designed for the frozen dough to be put right into the oven. However,  they tend to crumble in the center when you slice them. Even if you’ve give the dough time to thaw. Nobody wants that. If you are freezing the cookies, my recommendation is to cut them after chilling, but before freezing. You can layer the slices between small sheets of parchment paper before storing them. This will make them more like “break and bake” cookies. It will also let you determine how many you would like to bake at a time.

    Side note:  If you make your cookies round, your dough will probably flatten on one side while it chills. Don’t worry though, as long as you only do the single hour of refrigeration, this is easily recoverable. After you’ve cut the shortbread cookies, use the heat of your hands to gently shape the cookies individually. This will also help the turbinado sugar stick better when you roll the cookies in it.

    A large gold plate filled with shortbread cookies

    Can I Make These Shortbread Cookies Ahead?

    Yes, absolutely. One of the unique features of this recipe is that the brown butter reduces the amount of water in the dough. This means that the cookies can be baked one to two weeks ahead, but not go stale before eating them. (This also makes them a perfect candidate for your next cookie exchange!).

    If that makes you a bit uncomfortable, you can make the dough up to three days ahead. Keep it on the countertop or in the refrigerator until you are ready to use. The dough will harden up quite a bit in the fridge, so make sure to let it thaw a bit before using.

    How To Decorate This Shortbread Cookie Recipe

    The toffee bits get mixed into the cookie dough, so these shortbread cookies are already a bit fun. To take it up a notch, I recommend rolling the cookie dough in turbinado sugar before baking. (Also known as sugar in the raw.)

    I did learn the hard way NOT to roll the shortbread cookies in the toffee pieces. When they are left on their own without the protection of the dough, they melt quickly. They also melt away from the cookie. This makes the toffee pieces extra crunchy, and the cookie very funny looking.

    A single round shortbread cookie leaning against a stack of five

    Where to Get The Toffee Pieces

    One of my favorite ways to get toffee pieces for this shortbread cookie recipe is to buy real toffee. There is almost always a bunch of toffee crumbs left in the bottom of the canister. (This is my absolute favorite!)  If you’re feeling up for it, you can make some yourself and smash the candy into small pieces. Lastly, you can get some in the baking aisle of most grocery stores. Heath sells small bags of toffee bits and those can usually be found near the chocolate chips.

    How To Make This Brown Butter Shortbread Cookie Recipe

    To get a really spectacular covering of the turbinado sugar on the outside of the cookies tilt the bowl towards you. Roll the cookie through the “corner” of the bowl until fully coated. This helps get the side entirely covered with the sugar.


    Want a free printable grocery list for this brown butter shortbread cookie recipe? Get it here.


    Use this grocery list to help simplify shopping. Everything is listed in standard grocery store amounts. If no size is specified, even the smallest package will provide more than enough.

    If you are looking for some other delectable cookie recipes, I recommend:

    • Chewy Almond Sugar Cookies
    • No Bake Biscoff Truffles
    • Chewy Hazelnut Oatmeal Cookies with Salted Caramel

    Happy Cooking!

    five shortbread cookies stacked in front of a cooling rack
    5 from 17 votes

    Brown Butter Shortbread Cookies with Toffee

    These melt in your mouth brown butter shortbread cookies are a perfect treat with coffee or a cocktail.  
    Course: Dessert
    Cuisine: American
    Author: Mackenzie Ryan
    24 cookies
    Prep Time: 5 minutes minutes
    Cook Time: 15 minutes minutes
    Chilling Time: 1 hour hour
    Total Time: 20 minutes minutes
    Pin it for later?

    Ingredients

    • 1 cup brown butter, room temperature
    • ¾ cup powdered sugar
    • 1 teaspoon salt
    • 2 ⅓ cups all purpose flour, spooned and leveled
    • 1 cup toffee bits
    • ½ cup turbinado sugar

    Instructions

    • In a food processor or bowl of an electric mixer, cream together the brown butter, powdered sugar, and salt until smooth.  Slowly add in the flour until everything is combined, scraping down the sides as needed.  Fold in the toffee pieces with a rubber spatula.
    • On a lightly floured surface, shape the dough into an 8-10 inch log.  Wrap it in plastic wrap and refrigerate for one hour.
    • Place the racks in the upper and lower third of the oven. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
    • Slice the shortbread cookies into ¼" pieces and roll the edges in the turbinado sugar. Transfer them to two parchment paper lined baking sheets with 12-14 cookies on each pan. Bake for 16-18 minutes, rotating the pans halfway through.  Let the shortbread cookies cool for 5 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack.

    Notes

    The cookies will only spread

    Nutrition

    Serving: 1cookies | Calories: 146kcal | Carbohydrates: 17g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 7g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Cholesterol: 20mg | Sodium: 165mg | Potassium: 15mg | Sugar: 8g | Vitamin A: 240IU | Calcium: 5mg | Iron: 0.6mg
    Tell me how much you love this recipeand show off how you made it!
    « How To Brown Butter (Beurre Noisette) For Cooking and Baking
    How To Cream Butter and Sugar | The Creaming Method »

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Marisa Franca says

      December 25, 2018 at 10:34 am

      5 stars
      We love anything that has brown butter included in it. Just that extra step gives any dish an added richness to it. These cookies look like they'd melt in your mouth. I'm saving this recipe to make for an afternoon gathering I'm planning.

      Reply
      • Mackenzie Ryan says

        January 08, 2019 at 8:32 am

        I hope you love the recipe, Marisa. It's definitely a big hit everywhere I've taken it.

        Reply
    2. Sues says

      December 24, 2018 at 9:20 pm

      5 stars
      I am all about shortbread cookies lately and am always very into toffee! And that brown butter?? omg these sound ridiculously delicious!

      Reply
      • Mackenzie Ryan says

        January 08, 2019 at 8:33 am

        They are so velvety and practically melt in your mouth. The brown butter adds such depth and flavor!

        Reply
    3. Traci says

      December 24, 2018 at 6:50 am

      5 stars
      This recipe is stunner! You had me at shortbread and won my heart over with the brown butter. I love how you explain every detail in this post too, and those gorgeous photos make me want to reach in grab one, or four. So glad I've found my new shortbread cookie recipe!

      Reply
      • Mackenzie Ryan says

        January 08, 2019 at 8:35 am

        Thank you so much, Traci. I feel the way about shortbread cookies, and once I started making them with brown butter, I could never go back!

        Reply
    4. Tina says

      December 24, 2018 at 5:15 am

      5 stars
      Shortbread cookies are near and dear to my heart as they are my absolute favorite Christmas cookie. I love the addition of the browned butter and toffee to this recipe. Thank you for the detailed instructions as I am sure it will help me make them perfectly. Love that I can freeze these then 'break and bake' as many as I need! 🙂

      Reply
      • Mackenzie Ryan says

        January 08, 2019 at 8:37 am

        I'm with you on a love of shortbread cookies, so I'm all about the "break and bake" so I can enjoy them whenever I'm craving them, but without overindulging.

        Reply
    5. Daniela says

      December 23, 2018 at 3:22 pm

      5 stars
      I'm obsessed with brown butter, so these cookies are going on my list of things to bake this week. And I love that you can double the recipe and freeze them for later! I bet they would make a great gift too!

      Reply
      • Mackenzie Ryan says

        January 08, 2019 at 8:38 am

        These are perfect for giving as an edible gift because they stay fresh for longer than most cookies. They are superb.

        Reply
    6. Tracy says

      December 23, 2018 at 8:40 am

      5 stars
      Oh my gosh you were SO right, browning that butter was totally worth the extra time. It was PERFECT with the toffee. My coworkers flipped over it - they said they were the best shortbread cookies they've ever had - thank you!!

      Reply
      • Mackenzie Ryan says

        December 23, 2018 at 2:06 pm

        This makes me so happy to hear, Tracy. I'm doing a happy dance! I'm so glad they loved this recipe!

        Reply
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