Description
Classic Christmas Shortbread Cookies blend buttery richness with festive cheer, delivering pure holiday magic in each delicate bite. Simple ingredients create a melt-in-your-mouth treat you’ll cherish during seasonal celebrations.
Ingredients
Scale
Main Ingredients:
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
Sweeteners:
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar
Garnish:
- Maraschino cherries (halved)
Instructions
- Warm the oven to 350°F and prepare a parchment-lined baking sheet to prevent cookie sticking and simplify post-baking cleanup.
- Using a mixing bowl, whip softened butter and powdered sugar together until the mixture transforms into a light, airy consistency, which requires approximately 2-3 minutes of blending.
- Gradually incorporate flour into the butter-sugar mixture, gently combining until the dough coheres. Use hands to compress the mixture into a unified ball if necessary.
- Craft uniform dough spheres roughly 1 inch in diameter, positioning them evenly across the prepared baking sheet with sufficient spacing to accommodate potential expansion.
- Delicately imprint each dough ball’s center using a thumb or small spoon, creating a subtle indentation designed to cradle a vibrant maraschino cherry half.
- Transfer the baking sheet into the preheated oven, allowing cookies to transform for 10-12 minutes until edges acquire a delicate golden hue. Monitor carefully to prevent excessive browning.
- After removing from the oven, permit cookies to rest momentarily on the baking sheet before transitioning them to a wire cooling rack, enabling complete temperature reduction and structural stabilization.
- Once thoroughly cooled, these delicate shortbread morsels are primed for consumption, offering a sublime blend of buttery richness and festive cherry accent.
Notes
- Softened butter is crucial for achieving the perfect creamy texture, so let it sit at room temperature for about 30 minutes before starting.
- Use a light hand when mixing the flour to prevent the cookies from becoming tough and dense.
- Maraschino cherries can be swapped with other festive toppings like colored sprinkles or crushed nuts for variety.
- For a gluten-free version, substitute regular flour with a high-quality gluten-free flour blend that contains xanthan gum for better binding.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Category: Desserts, Snacks
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 24
- Calories: 110
- Sugar: 3 g
- Sodium: 10 mg
- Fat: 7 g
- Saturated Fat: 4.5 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 2.5 g
- Trans Fat: 0.1 g
- Carbohydrates: 12 g
- Fiber: 0.2 g
- Protein: 1 g
- Cholesterol: 20 mg